The Revengers
by karevsprincess
Summary: Nolan Ross returns to The Hamptons a year after the creation of his new business and reunites with his favorite team of revenge-getters. But an innocent summer is complicated by an unexpected reminder of a painful point in his past and a new mystery to solve. Their revenge days may not be over just yet. / Nolan-centric spinoff story, featuring the whole gang.
1. Pilot

**A/N** : So this story has been in my brain for a long time. It's basically a _Revenge_ spinoff, starring Nolan and Co. I originally created the concept in the form of six "seasons", TV show style, because for my own amusement I like to make fake TV shows (yeah I'm weird). Then I decided that maybe I should actually write it as a fanfic series, and I've been working on this story since Christmas. Obviously it will not be 132 chapters - this particular story will be 10 chapters, with the possibility for a sequel (or sequels) to follow. I'm kind of nervous to publish this because I'm worried that no one will be interested in reading it, but I figured I might as well post it before I go on Spring Break. Like I said I'm really nervous about how this will go so reviews, favorites, alerts, whatever would really mean a lot.

Just in case you get confused: this story will feature _Revenge_ -style flash-forwards (though they'll be a little more like _How To Get Away With Murder_ , as my plan is to feature a flash-forward scene every chapter until the two timelines converge) and this chapter also includes flashbacks. The **bold** will indicate a change in date so you know when we're flashing-forward, flashing-back and when we're in the present. I also included the time of day when things take place so you can have a sequence of events for the flash-forwards, etc. The _italics_ indicate the equivalent to a voiceover – all of them are Nolan's POV unless otherwise stated, since he is the primary character. Anyways, hope you enjoy! And please, _please_ review if you like it. No one wants to continue a story if they think no one is interested.

 **Disclaimer** : I don't own the awesome TV show _Revenge_.

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 7:06 a.m.**

 **Manhattan, New York**

He threw open the door to his car, despite the scolding of his driver, his eyes trained on the sight before him. Everyone else was running in the opposite direction – away – as fast as their legs could carry them, but his gaze did not falter as he made a quick, deliberate walk forward.

Towards the flames that were still engulfing the building where a bomb had just gone off moments before, in the most crowded part of Manhattan at rush hour.

 _My name is Nolan Ross. Five years ago, I helped my best friend embark on a journey of revenge against the people who framed her father for a crime he did not commit. But you probably knew that._

After being pushed and shoved by a throng of frantic people, he was finally close to his destination. The law office in the middle of Times Square was shaken from the blast, having been caught in the center of the explosion. One of the upper floors was completely wrecked while another was on fire, flames shooting out, and the building started to crumble while the few survivors limped out weakly, barely hanging onto life and screaming. Last time he checked, they'd all been inside – everyone he loved. Everyone who mattered to him.

All of them except one.

 _Now, after helping her clear her father's name, I've started my own company to prove the innocence of more of the falsely imprisoned. But never did I think that the next person I'd be trying so desperately to free…_

Screams were ringing in his ears, and sirens were wailing, and his legs felt like they might give way, but in that moment all Nolan Ross could think about was one thing – _her_. With shaking hands he pulled out his phone, dialed her number, only to receive no answer. The sound of her voice over the answering machine nearly elicited a sob from him, because God she had to be okay. She _had_ to be.

But where was she?

… _was someone so close to me._

* * *

 **May 30, 2016 10:20 a.m.**

 **Memorial Day**

 **Southampton, New York**

Nolan Ross smiled as he sped off down the last stretch of road leading into The Hamptons. With the roof down on his car the wind whipped around his sandy blonde hair, while the sun shone brightly and the air had that signature salty sea smell. It felt so good to be back.

In truth, it had been almost a year since Nolan had been in The Hamptons for more than a visit. His latest business venture kept him in New York City most of the time these days – even though he was highly selective, it was only because the clients he did choose to take on required much of his time and effort.

As if on cue, a voice came on the radio. "This just in: Wall Street bank executive acquitted of embezzlement charges. This is yet another win for Nolan Ross – the former tech guru and his latest enterprise, Ross & Associates, work to prove the innocence of those who have been imprisoned for high-profile crimes. This victory will uphold Mr. Ross's current success rate of 100%. Now to Greg with sports…"

Nolan smirked and fist pumped the air just as he turned onto his exit, the sign reading Southampton, New York: 1 mile. Yes, this truly was the best it got.

A few moments later, Nolan pulled into the parking lot of a place he knew well: the Hamptons Beach Club. While it was technically still his establishment – as his name was on the deed – this was his first time here in nearly a year. With a nostalgic smile he pushed open the door and stepped inside.

He paused when he caught a glimpse of the blonde standing behind the bar, her back turned to him. "Sorry," She said, not looking up. "We're closed."

"Oh come on Ams," Nolan replied, stepping forward. "Not even one drink to celebrate the triumphant return of your best friend?"

Amanda Porter (née Clarke) spun around immediately at the sound of his voice, a wide smile breaking out on her face. It was a look he was still getting used to seeing on her, as for four years he had never seen a grin so radiant as the ones she always seemed to be sporting nowadays. "Nolan? Oh my God! Hi!" He laughed as his best friend in the world practically raced around the bar, before ambling towards him and accepting his offer of a big hug.

"Amanda? What's going on?" A voice called out from the storage room, and the two friends pulled apart as Jack Porter stepped out into the hallway. The other man grinned when he saw their unexpected guest. "Nolan? Hey! It's so good to see you, man!"

"Well, if it isn't Mr. Amanda Clarke." Nolan teased, causing Jack to roll his eyes as he went in to give the former another enthusiastic hug.

He was finally home.

* * *

After their warm reunion the trio seated themselves in one of the booths, Nolan on one side and his two closest friends on the other. Jack placed three glasses down on the table – the aforementioned celebratory drinks being coffee not alcohol, since it was still so early – while Amanda ruffled the hair of her stepson, who was climbing off her lap. After the almost four year old's initial excitement at seeing his honorary uncle, Carl had now completely lost interest in what the adults were doing and raced off to go play.

"So, how is America's favorite couple?" Nolan asked. He pulled a tabloid out of his briefcase and slid it across the table when his friends only looked at him with confusion, and their eyes widened when they saw the cover. There were photos of the two of them – all of which had obviously been taken without their knowledge – and a headline promising "all the intimate details about America's sweethearts, Amanda and Jack".

"America's sweethearts?" Amanda recited, an 'are you kidding me?' look on her face. "Really? Us?"

"The people love an epic love story, and they love you," Nolan replied nonchalantly as he lifted his mug to his lips. "You're like the new Brangelina. Or Kimye!"

"What is a Kimye?" Jack asked, clueless.

"It's two names put together," Nolan said, trying to explain the concept to his friends who cared very little about pop culture. "They're calling you guys Jamanda." Amanda made a gagging motion with her hand.

"Anyways," She said, changing the subject. "We have a surprise for you." Nolan watched her curiously as she got up, reappearing a moment later with a bag in hand. "I know last year was the big one, but we still wanted to get you something to celebrate, albeit belatedly since you were out of town for your actual birthday. Happy forty-first."

Nolan cringed slightly when she said how old he was, but accepted the gift nonetheless. "I don't know what you're talking about, I'm the same age as both of you."

The duo smiled and chuckled at his denial. "Just open it," Jack insisted. "It was Amanda's idea."

Nolan pulled back the tissue paper, his hand coming into contact with leather. Inside, he found several leather bound books. He took one in his hand, flipping through the crisp white pages with interest. "They're journals," Amanda explained. "So you can write about all your experiences. And maybe someday, you can give them to someone who means something to you."

Nolan smiled at her. "They're great, thank you." He knew how personal a gift this was – her father's diaries were still some of Amanda's most treasured possessions. He flipped to the first page, running his fingers down the blank parchment in front of him. It represented so many things - a fresh start, a new beginning, endless possibilities. Now, he was writing his own story.

He may not have realized it then, but unbeknownst to Nolan Ross, a new chapter was beginning...

* * *

Meanwhile across town, Charlotte Clarke stepped out of the elevator and into the brand new Southampton office of Ross & Associates. Her Jimmy Choos clacked against the floor as she walked inside, approaching the front desk. "Excuse me," She said to the woman seated there, pushing her designer sunglasses onto the top of her head. "I'm one of Mr. Ross's summer interns, and I just came to pick up my orientation packet."

The woman raised her eyebrow. "You came all the way here just for that?"

"Well I was in the neighborhood," Charlotte explained with a shrug. "And I figured I'd say hello to Nolan if he was in. He's best friends with my sister and I wanted to thank him for giving me this job. It really means a lot, and it's been a while since I've seen him so..."

The woman's expression transformed into one of realization. "You're David Clarke and Victoria Grayson's daughter, aren't you?" She said, and Charlotte's shoulders slumped. How much she _dreaded_ hearing those words. People mentioning David wasn't so bad – albeit a little bit painful – but she hated the constant reminders of who her mother was. She wished people would know her name for her own accomplishments – since deciding to go back to school, she'd been accepted as a pre-law student at NYU, made the dean's list, and had recently completed her freshman year top of her class. Yet everyone knew her because of her deceased parents' notoriety and her provocative behavior as a teen in front of the paparazzi.

"Can I just get my packet, please?"

The receptionist nodded. "Yeah, take a seat. I'll get them for both of you."

Charlotte turned around when she said 'both', while the woman disappeared into Nolan's office. A short, blonde girl who looked to be a few years younger than Charlotte was seated in the row of waiting room chairs, legs crossed. Charlotte walked over and sat a seat down from her, discreetly looking her over out of the corner of her eye. The other girl looked up, smiling when she saw her company. "So I guess we'll be working together, huh?"

"Yeah," Charlotte nodded. "I guess so. I'm Charlotte."

"Oh, I know you." The girl said and Charlotte audibly sighed.

"Yes, David Clarke was my father. Yes, Victoria Grayson was my mother. Yes, Amanda Porter is my sister. Are you happy now?"

The girl laughed lightly and shook her head. "I know that, but that's not what I meant. You're a freshman at NYU, aren't you? We had trig together last semester."

"Oh," Charlotte said, remembering this now. She could now vaguely remember the girl who had sat a row ahead of her in the lecture hall – the same girl who was sitting a seat down from her now. "You're right, I'm sorry. I just…"

"It's okay," The girl replied. "I totally understood, people must hound you all the time."

"You're…Hailey, right?" The girl nodded, while Charlotte got up and moved over so they were sitting next to each other. "I guess I just didn't recognize you when I wasn't staring at the back of your head."

The girl – Hailey – smiled. "And I almost didn't recognize you when you weren't doodling in your notebook. Pre-law, right?"

"Yeah, and what about you?"

"Computer science."

"Oh, _now_ I see why you wanted this internship with Nolan."

"Well, he is a genius." Hailey conceded, pushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "When I was a little kid, I would follow NolCorp's stocks in _The Times_. It drove my mother insane. We're actually spending the summer in Southampton because her boss let us use one of his beach houses, so I figured I might as well apply. She's taking me to this party tonight – one of her co-workers had a last minute emergency so I'm going instead."

"The Memorial Day party?" Charlotte asked and Hailey nodded in affirmation. "One of my friends is throwing it."

"Well," Hailey said, standing up when the receptionist returned. "I guess we'll be seeing a lot of each other, then."

Charlotte smiled. "I guess we will."

* * *

When Nolan Ross stepped into the house formerly known as Grayson Manor, he was hit immediately with a sense of déjà vu. Even though the grounds now held a stately Southern-style mansion, he still couldn't help but think about all the horrible memories that had been forged on this very spot...

He found her holding court in the living room, her subjects all sitting loyally around her finishing their drinks. "Alright, ladies. I'll see you at my little shindig tonight, yes?" Excited chatter followed, all of them saying how it would be oh-so-much fun, before they were all dismissed. A few of the women walked right past him, while others openly stared – they knew who he was. One of them was obviously checking him out, causing Nolan to squirm.

"Nolan?!"

His attention was diverted by the familiar Southern drawl, and he saw a certain redhead come barreling towards him. Nolan soon found himself captured in the death grip of one Louise Ellis. "Oh, Nolan! I missed you so much!"

"I've missed you too, Lulu." Nolan replied. "But…I kind of can't breathe right now."

Louise jumped back, allowing Nolan to finally exhale. "Oh, I'm sorry sweetie. It's just been far too long. Sit down for some lemonade! Tell me everything that's going on with you - I want to know everything!"

Accepting her invitation, Nolan lowered himself onto one of the love seats, while Louise fixed him a drink. "I like what you've done with the place."

"Thanks, sugar." Louise said, handing him a glass. "I'm still trying to make it my own, but it's coming along just fine. I'm going to officially debut it at my Memorial Day party tonight." She took a sip of her lemonade and offered Nolan some cookies, which he politely declined. "So, what's goin' on with you? How's business?"

"...Great." He said, but it didn't come out sounding like he'd hoped it would.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "That doesn't sound sincere."

"What? I'm great!" Nolan said, not sounding any more convincing the second time, and Louise narrowed her eyes at him because she knew he was lying. He sighed and put down his glass. "I'm not lying when I say the business is going well - because it is. But as for me...I can't help but still feel...unfulfilled. Empty, even..."

"Empty how?" Louise asked. "Why, you're living a life other people can only dream of!"

"I know that. But…God Louise, I haven't been on a date in over a year. The last person I dated was Tony. To be honest I'm really...lonely." He shook his head and shrugged. "I guess that's why I'm setting up a Southampton office. I wanted to come home, be around people who care about me. Because coming home to an empty bed in an empty house - not exactly living the dream."

Louise chewed on a bite of cookie thoughtfully for a moment. She scooted over, placing her hand on Nolan's knee. "Let me ask you something: when was the last time you loved and trusted someone completely?"

Nolan pondered this for a moment. He'd been in love several times throughout his life. But his romantic relationships during Amanda's revenge mission weren't exactly built on mutual trust. The last time he was in a stable relationship? God, that had to be… "College." He answered finally. "It was college. I still remember the first time I met her..."

* * *

 **March 20, 1995 10:59 p.m.**

 **Massachusetts Institute of Technology**

A party was the last place nineteen-year-old Nolan Ross currently wanted to be. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat on the couch, while some students played beer pong on the coffee table. Even though it was Spring Break of his sophomore year at MIT and he should be celebrating, he had bigger issues on his mind.

"Hey, can you turn that up?" Someone yelled. The stereo was immediately shut off and the host of the party grabbed the television remote, cranking up the volume on the eleven o'clock news.

"Our first story tonight," said the anchorman. "The David Clarke trial commenced today in New York. Mr. Clarke – who was arrested on August 31 – is accused of one of the most heinous acts of terrorism in recent history…"

Behind him, Nolan heard someone spit on the floor. "I hope they give that scum the death penalty."

A few people nodded in agreement, while Nolan felt his fists clench at his sides. People talking about the man who was like a father to him like that...it made his blood boil. "You don't know him," He muttered, unable to control himself.

The guy who had made the earlier comment looked at him now, as did all the other occupants of the living room. "What'd you say?"

"I said, you don't know him." Nolan replied, not backing down. He looked the other boy dead in the eye, glaring at him. "I do. And I know for a fact that he didn't do what they say he did."

"Hang out with terrorists much, Ross?" Someone joked, and there was a chorus of laughter. Nolan could feel his face grow hot with anger.

"Hey, leave him alone." The room immediately went silent as a new voice made itself heard in the conversation. Everyone stared openly at the person who had just talked – a petite dirty blonde, being on the shorter side and no bigger than a size two, people were visibly shocked that she'd spoken out so assertively. "What happened to innocent until proven guilty? How would you feel if he was your father, or your son, or your friend? You all have no idea what you're talking about, so shut up!"

There was a silence, but then the first guy who had spoken laughed and rolled his eyes. "That's what we get for inviting underclassmen to our party, right?" His friends chuckled.

Without another word, Nolan threw his still full plastic cup on the floor, spilling beer all over the carpet, and stormed out of the house. There was a chorus of ooh's when they saw him leave, followed by more laughter and the persistent drone of the TV in the background.

"Hey, wait up!" Nolan turned around, halfway down the walkway by this point, but he was not followed by one of his tormentors – it was the girl. She'd taken off her heels in her haste to catch up with him, her dirty blonde hair flying. "I'm sorry they said that stuff to you."

Nolan shrugged at her and kept walking. "I don't care what they think about David, or me."

"That's a lie," The girl said, still following him – shoes in hand – as he started back to his dorm. "I saw how much it upset you."

Nolan sighed. "Everyone wants to be liked I guess. But they're idiots anyway."

"Yeah," The girl agreed. "Idiots."

Nolan stopped walking and paused in front of her, catching the girl so off guard she nearly collided into him when he turned around. He was able to get a good look at her for the first time – her eyes were a bright shade of green, she was skinny and she looked younger than him, couldn't be older than a freshman. "You didn't have to stick up for me, you know."

The girl pushed a strand of hair behind her ear, shifting from one foot to the other nervously. "Well, I…I wanted to." She paused, biting down on her lip. "Do you…do you really think he's innocent?"

Nolan nodded without hesitation. "I _know_ he's innocent. David's like a father to me. And he gave me the money I needed to help me start my company. I know he's not capable of something so horrible."

"…I think he's innocent too." The girl confessed breathily. "Everyone thinks I'm crazy or some whackjob conspiracy theorist but…"

Nolan was silent for a long moment. "…Do you want to come back to my dorm?" Off her look of hesitation, he clarified: "Not for _that_. I meant, for a cup of coffee."

She smiled. "Okay."

Nolan smiled too, and extended his hand to her. "I'm Nolan Ross, by the way."

The girl grinned and shook his hand. "Nice to meet you Nolan. I'm Olivia, Olivia Anderson."

* * *

 **May 30, 2016 11:45 a.m.**

"Well?" Louise said as Nolan finished his story suddenly. "What happened?"

"We dated," He answered, but he wasn't looking at Louise - he was staring into space, clearly still stuck in his memory. "For almost two years. She – she was the most brilliant person I'd ever met. She gave me the courage that led to me turning my fledgling company into a billion dollar corporation. She loved me for who I was and I…I loved her with everything I had in me. I've never loved anyone the same way since."

"What happened to her?"

"I don't know."

"You should call her!" Louise said excitedly. "Nolan, this is the one who got away! She could be the love of your life!"

"She _was_ the love of my life."

"Nolan!" Louise said, practically bursting at the seams. She grabbed his arm and Nolan winced, because without her realizing her fingernails were digging into his flesh. "She might still be single! What if she's been waiting for you all these years? Oh, this is so _romantic_ –"

"I can't call her, Louise." Nolan said sternly, yanking his arm away.

The redhead tilted her head and gave him a look. "Well, why not? It's worth a try." She said, a hand on her hip stubbornly.

Nolan sighed and closed his eyes. "Because," He said. "She broke my heart."

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 7:11 a.m.**

It didn't take long for the medics to arrive, then the police. He'd heard several people whisper that agents from the FBI's New York office were already on the scene. "Just let me in, please!" Nolan protested with a set of two security guards, who were guarding the blast site that had already been surrounded by crime scene tape. "I think my client may be back there and I need to see her!"

"I'm sorry sir, but we've been instructed by the police to not let anyone in without their permission."

"God, don't you know who I am?"

"Unless who you are is a member of the FBI or NYPD, I don't care sir."

Nolan sighed, knowing this would get him nowhere, and finally turned away. He surveyed the crowd, searching for anyone he recognized. Were they alive or dead? He had no idea where any of his friends were. All he knew was that they'd been headed towards the building, the building which moments ago had blown up...

Scratch that – he knew where one was. Through the crowd he spotted a familiar face, their eyes locking, and they both immediately began shoving their way through the mob to get to each other. "Jack?"

The other man was finally within reach of him and the two friends hugged quickly, glad to see that the other was okay but both still completely disorientated. "The two of us were outside of the building when it exploded," Jack explained. Altogether he looked to be in one piece, albeit a little bit dusty and visibly shaken. "We…we lost each other in the confusion after that."

"Do you know where…" Nolan began, his voice hoarse. "Do you know where _she_ was when the bomb went off?"

Jack knew immediately whom his friend was referring to and his eyes widened with panic and realization. "I thought she was with you. You mean no one knows where she is?"

Nolan cursed under his breath as he began to scan the crowd again.

She could be anywhere by now.

* * *

 **May 30, 2016 12:50 p.m.**

"I'm so happy to be home," Charlotte sighed contently as she strolled down Main Street with her sister and brother-in-law, who were currently holding hands beside her. In the stroller Charlotte was pushing, her step-nephew was napping contently. "And this party is going to be so much fun. So much better than keg stands and beer pong."

"Okay, I'm gonna pretend my little sister didn't just say that." Amanda replied.

"Hey, I'm legal now." Charlotte teased, causing her sister to give her a look.

"Doesn't matter," Jack interjected, wrapping his arm around his wife's shoulder. "You'll always be a baby to us." Charlotte rolled her eyes playfully.

"Charlotte?" The trio looked up, seeing a petite blonde stepping out of the dry cleaner's they were passing. Charlotte smiled when she saw her - whoever this was, they knew each other.

"Hey!" She said happily, greeting her with a friendly hug. "Amanda, Jack, this is Hailey. We go to college together. Hailey, this is my sister Amanda and my brother-in-law Jack."

Hailey looked at them, going wide-eyed when she saw who she was in the presence of. "Hi, so nice to meet you! Not to sound crazy, but I'm such a fan of you guys!"

"Oh my God," Amanda whispered to her husband. "Nolan was right. We are Jamanda."

"What was that?" Charlotte asked.

"Nothing," Jack said, dismissing her quickly.

"Well anyway," Charlotte said, getting back to the introduction at hand. "Hailey is one of Nolan's new interns with me, and she and her mom are going to Louise's party tonight. This is their first summer in The Hamptons."

"Just picking up my dress," Hailey explained, holding up her garment bag. "Though I have a feeling I will be incredibly under-dressed."

"You can borrow something from me!" Charlotte offered without hesitation. "I'd be happy to let you wear whatever you want! And your mom can wear something of Amanda's, right Am?"

Her sister nodded. "Sure. Anything for friends of Charlotte's."

"So after one day of friendship you've already given me a dress?" Charlotte nodded and Hailey laughed. "Okay, but I totally owe you."

Just then the door to the dry cleaner's opened again. "Hailes let's g-" The woman paused when she saw they had company. The group quickly inferred that she was Hailey's mom - though she could probably also pass as the teenage girl's older sister due to her fresh-faced appearance and their similar senses of style. There was an obvious resemblance, though Hailey was a little shorter and they had different colored eyes – Hailey's being blue and her mother's green. But seeing them, there was no doubt they were related.

"Mom," Hailey said. "This is Charlotte, Amanda and Jack. They're gonna be at the party tonight."

The woman smiled and extended her hand. "Hi, nice to meet you guys. I'm Olivia."

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 7:22 a.m.**

Once they had reunited, Nolan and Jack immediately went back to the task at hand – searching for the rest of their group. But Times Square was understandably still in chaos. As cops and FBI agents held back anxious crowds, loved ones were crying and hugging as they were reunited, while others were bursting into loud sobs as they had the worst news in the world delivered to them. And still, no one knew who was responsible for this horrible event.

Suddenly, Jack stopped in his tracks. "Amanda?"

She spun around at the sound of her name, relief washing over her face as Jack barreled towards her, pulling her into his arms for a tearful embrace. "I had no idea where the Hell you were." Jack said. They pulled apart to get a good look at each other and he touched her dust covered face, wiping blood from a cut on her cheek. "Don't you ever scare me like that again, you got it?"

Amanda nodded fervently, grabbing onto him for dear life. "I am so sorry…I tried to find you, I was worried that you…I'm sorry, it was all my –" Jack didn't let her finish her apology, instead catching her lips into a desperate kiss. It was as if the two of them hadn't seen each other in a million years - even though it had actually been less than twenty minutes.

Nolan approached them slowly – while he was so relieved that his two best friends were okay, he still had no idea where the rest of his team was. Had they made it out in time too?

Amanda looked up, Jack not letting go of his hold on her – as if by doing so he'd lose her again. She turned to Nolan, tears pooling in her eyes by this point. "Someone…someone pulled her out right after the building exploded."

Both men looked over her shoulder, eyes widening at the disheveled girl as she approached them. She was clutching her shoulder like it was dislocated, walking with a slight limp, and there was blood and broken glass in her hair. "Hailey?" Nolan gasped.

The young girl said nothing, brushing right past Amanda and Jack and burying her face into Nolan's chest. Hesitantly he reached out his arms, touching her back gently. Hailey let out a loud sob and wrapped her good arm around her boss. "Nolan," She whimpered. "I need your help."

* * *

 **May 30, 2016 7:30 p.m.**

The Memorial Day party was already in full swing as Nolan stepped inside Ellis Manor for the second time in one day. The perfectly polished hostess – who was happily chatting with a group of admirers in the foyer – excused herself from her conversation as soon as she saw him. "Thank you for coming," Louise said, hugging Nolan in greeting. "Come on, let's get you a drink." She led him inside, stealing two flutes of Cristal from a passing caterer, returning to her adoring public. "Everyone, I'm sure you know my friend Nolan Ross."

The trio – two pretty women, and one elegantly dressed man – eyed him up. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Nolan." One of the women said.

The man – sensing her flirting – stepped a little closer to Nolan. "I'm a _big_ fan of your work."

"We'd love to hear about your latest venture." The other woman emphasized, batting her eyelashes. "Every detail."

That's all it took for Nolan to realize what this was. Discretion was clearly not their strong suits. He looked at Louise, visibly annoyed, and she smiled sheepishly. "Excuse us for a moment," She said to her guests, before Nolan dragged her off to the side.

"Are you trying to set me up with one of your friends because of what I told you earlier?" Nolan asked, though he clearly knew the answer.

Louise nodded. "Janelle is a very accomplished interior decorator who also breeds poodles and loves long walks on the beach. Troy is an aspiring fashion designer looking to settle down and have a big family. And they're both totally into you."

"Louise," Nolan sighed. "I don't want to be set up. I'm done chasing after people just to get my heart broken. If it's meant to be, it'll be."

"Well if you just want to have a little fun in the sack to get yourself back out there," Louise insisted. "Margaret just caught her soon-to-be ex-husband in bed with their nanny and is willing to sleep with anyone. Literally _anyone_."

Nolan gawked at her, unsure of what to say. So he simply downed the rest of his champagne and turned on his heel to walk away. He had a feeling this would be a long night.

* * *

When he walked into the kitchen, he found the rest of his friends all there – Amanda, Jack, Charlotte, and someone else who he didn't know. She obviously knew him though, as when she saw him she immediately perked up. "Nolan Ross!" The girl said excitedly, surging forward and extending her hand. "Hi! My name is Hailey and I'm going to be one of your interns this summer. And I don't know if I had time to personally review my application but…"

"I heard about your resume," Nolan said, accepting her handshake. "You were student council president at your high school, spent a summer with Habitat For Humanity, got a scholarship to NYU, and put computers back together for fun. Nice to put a face to the credentials."

"We actually met at school," Charlotte added. "Hailey's brilliant, she always got the best test scores in our math class. This is her and her mother's first summer in The Hamptons."

"Who's your mother? Do I know her?"

Charlotte nodded towards something behind him. "Speak of the devil,"

Nolan turned around and immediately stopped in his tracks. As he was approached by this beautiful blonde in an off-the-shoulder white dress – the same dress Amanda had worn her first Memorial Day in The Hamptons – he was immediately overcome by déjà vu.

Because just like back then, this new girl was all too familiar to him.

Olivia looked up and he saw the look of horror cross her face. "…Hi."

 _Hi_. It was the first thing she'd said to him in almost twenty years.

He turned back to his friends, all of whom hadn't noticed that anything was amiss. And then his eyes landed on Hailey – the girl whom he had hired to work at his company, and who also happened to be the daughter of his first love. He really couldn't catch a break, could he? "Excuse me…"

He was halfway up the stairs when he heard her calling after him. "Hey, wait up!" He turned around, seeing Olivia chasing after him. She hiked up her skirt as she walked up the stairs, and cracked a smile at him. "You gonna make me take my heels off again?" She teased, but he didn't laugh. He turned around to look at her, his arms crossed over his chest.

"What are you doing here, Olivia?"

"I wouldn't have come if I knew you'd be here," Olivia said with a sigh. "I don't blame you for not wanting to see me, but last time I checked you were in New York and I hoped one conversation with the Clarkes wouldn't get back to you. I wanted to…to ask about you, pretend I was just a fan. Make sure you were doing okay..." She trailed off. "It's been a long time. I...I still wonder about you sometimes."

"Did they invite you?" Nolan asked. "My friends, I mean."

"My whole company was on the guest list. I work on Wall Street now."

Nolan raised an eyebrow at her. "I guess you went elsewhere for that economics degree then."

Olivia bit her lip. "Actually I'm a secretary. I…I never finished college."

"Well, I didn't either."

She chuckled lightly. "Didn't hold you back. I always knew you'd be richer than everyone else someday."

An awkward silence followed and Nolan glanced back to the kitchen. He could see Amanda and Jack talking to Charlotte while Hailey stood silently, her eyes roving around the room. She looked so much like Olivia, but he couldn't help but wonder… "Is she mine?"

"What?" Olivia gasped.

"She's a freshman in college," Nolan explained. "The last time I saw you was almost twenty years ago. The timing could potentially fit. So…am I her dad?"

Olivia looked incredibly hurt by this accusation. "…Is that really the kind of person you think I am?" After she saw that Nolan was waiting for a definite answer, she opened her purse and pulled something out of her wallet, extending it to him. It was a photo of a man, holding a chubby blonde baby – torn at the edges, showing that she'd carried it with her for what appeared to be a number of years. "That's Mike. My ex-husband. He left when she was little – never looked back. He gave up his parental rights and I changed Hailey's last name…It's just been the two of us ever since."

After staring at it for a moment, Nolan handed the photo back to her, a lump in his throat. "I'm sorry I accused you." While it was good to know he didn't have a secret child that he'd inadvertently ignored for almost twenty years, it still hurt to know that Olivia – the woman he'd never completely gotten over – had gotten married and had a child so quickly. Apparently moving on hadn't been nearly as hard for her as it had been for him.

"I _am_ sorry I hurt you," Olivia emphasized. "I still think about it all the time. But please, _please_ don't take this out on Hailey. She's smart, and she's going to do great things."

Nolan looked down and rubbed the back of his neck. "…Tell Hailey that I'll see her at work tomorrow."

Olivia smiled. "Thank you,"

"But I'm not doing this for you," He insisted. "I'm doing this for her. Because I know how great it feels to have someone believe in you." He didn't want to tell Olivia that he knew if Hailey was anything like her in personality as well as appearance, she was capable of great things. This was the woman who had broken his heart, after all.

That's why this time, he walked away from her for a change.

* * *

 **January 20, 1997 3:35 p.m.**

Nolan Ross threw open the door to his dorm room, finding Olivia already inside. "Liv, what the Hell?" He said. "You dropped out? Without talking to me?"

"I didn't need to talk to you about it," Olivia said. "It was my decision." When she looked at Nolan he could see that her eyes were red – she'd been bawling her eyes out.

"So that's it then?" Nolan asked dejectedly. "You're just leaving?"

"After I get the last of my stuff, yeah." Olivia replied, folding up the clothes which she'd left in Nolan's room. Once she'd placed them in her bag she zipped it up and slung it over her shoulder, turning to face him. "I just…I can't do this anymore, Nolan."

"Do what, Liv? I thought…I thought we were happy!"

Olivia shook her head. "I'm sorry. But we're not us anymore, Nolan. I'm not happy here anymore. I just…I just want to go home."

She started to head towards the door but Nolan grabbed her arm, stopping her in her tracks. "I can change!" He insisted desperately. "Just tell me what I have to do to keep you and I'll do it. Have you even thought this through? We just turned our theses in, if you'd been thinking about this for a while you would've left earlier."

Olivia turned back around to face him slowly, crying again. "There's nothing you can do. I just woke up today and I realized that everything has changed. You have the company and David to worry about and I have…nothing here. I just feel so empty, Nolan. And I want to be whole again." She touched Nolan's face, where a solitary tear rolled down his cheek. "NolCorp is a great company. I know that someday everyone else will see in it what I do. And what David did. And they'll see what we saw in you."

"Olivia, please." Nolan murmured. "I…I love you. Doesn't that mean anything?"

Olivia only dropped her hand and stepped back. "And I loved you too. You were my heart…" She shook her head. "But I guess sometimes that just isn't enough. Things have changed between us and I…I don't have a place here anymore."

"Olivia…"

She backed away, crying again. "I'm so sorry…" Then she walked out the door and out of his life, forever.

Or at least that was what he'd thought, anyway.

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 7:34 a.m.**

While Amanda and Jack continued to search for the rest of their group, Nolan stayed with Hailey. She sat in the back of an ambulance, a paramedic checking her all over after Nolan had insisted she get examined. Hesitantly, he touched her knee. "What happened, Hailey?"

Hailey shook her head, a lone tear running down her dirty face, and stared at the ground. "I…I don't know. I had just walked into the building and everything was fine and then…suddenly it was so loud. And everything above me was bright. When I woke up, I was on the ground outside. Someone pulled me out." She looked up, fear in her eyes. "What about everyone else? Did they make it out okay?"

"…Yeah." Nolan lied. "They're fine." He didn't know if that was true, but he wasn't going to tell Hailey that.

"She's going to need stitches." The paramedic said. "We'll have to take her to the hospital."

"Go," Nolan told Hailey. "I'll make sure everyone is okay." He started to walk away while the paramedic took Hailey by the arm, but she stood up forcefully, her eyes widening when she realized what she'd forgotten to ask.

"Nolan!" Hailey yelled after him. "My mom! You need to find my mom!" Nolan turned back around but by this point Hailey had been led inside the ambulance, the doors shut as they began to drive away.

 _My name is Nolan Ross. Five years ago, I helped my best friend get her revenge on the people who framed her father for a crime he did not commit. After that, I decided to put the past behind me and start a new chapter of my life._

Nolan pulled his phone out of his pocket and with shaky hands, he dialed her number one more time. Once again, he only got her machine. "Hey, this is Olivia! Leave a message, and I'll get right back to you!"

 _I thought that my days of revenge were behind me. Little did I know, that was only the beginning. It seems that my past…_

"Goddamnit, Olivia." He mumbled. "Where are you?"

… _is not done with me yet._

* * *

 **A/N (again)** : So...yeah. I feel like this was better in my head, but hopefully it was good? I know you probably have some questions, but they _will_ be answered. Eventually. Just, give it time. And if you want another chapter, please review! Like I said, who wants to write a story if they think no one out there cares? Thanks so much for reading guys!


	2. Fond Memories

**A/N** : Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed the first chapter! I'm glad there are people out there who are interested in this story and I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. It would mean a lot if you'd tell me what you think. I was thinking maybe I could update on Sundays since there are no new Revenge episodes to watch on Sundays anymore?

 **Disclaimer** : Still don't own _Revenge_.

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 7:47 a.m.**

 **Manhattan, New York**

 _Humans, by nature, reflect on the past._

"Are you okay?"

Amanda looked up, meeting the worried eyes of her husband, as they continued to make their way through the chaotic mess that was currently Times Square. "I'll be okay." She said. "I just have a few cuts and bruises, that's all."

"No, that's not what I meant." Jack said. He paused, looking at her thoughtfully. "I meant are you _okay_?"

 _About when we were young._

Amanda stopped walking once they reached a dead spot in the crowd, turning to look at her husband. Jack touched her hand tentatively, and she looked down, sniffling. After everything they'd been through lately, he'd still been so kind and caring towards her.

 _About when we were happy._

Even though she had deceived him. _Again_.

"I…I don't know." She told him. This was the truth.

With shaking hands Amanda reached into her pocket, her fingers clasping around her phone. The screen was cracked but it still worked, glowing to life.

"What are you doing?" Jack asked curiously, but Amanda only shushed him in response. She saw she had no missed calls and cursed to herself, dialing a number she knew by heart. No answer. "What's wrong?" Jack asked again, stepping closer.

Amanda looked up at him, eyes wide with worry. "…I don't know where Charlotte is."

Jack's face fell at the mention of the young woman who they both cared about deeply. But he pushed his own fear away, placing a reassuring hand on his wife's shoulder. "I'm sure she's okay. She's a Clarke – and if there's anything I know about the Clarkes, it's that they don't go down without a fight."

 _About the moments in our lives that forged who we are today._

Amanda nodded at his words of comfort, but the ache in her chest didn't go away.

* * *

 _But as tempting as it can be to live in your memories…_

Meanwhile, Nolan Ross' personal driver looked up in surprise when he heard the back door open. "Do you need something, Mr. Ross?"

"Ye…yes."

The driver looked over his shoulder when he saw his present company. It was not Nolan, but a girl. "I'm sorry," He said. "But this is Nolan Ross's private car."

The girl looked up. Considering what had just occurred she looked fairly put together, despite some dust on her designer clothes and a shaken expression on her face. "Nolan Ross knows me, it's fine. I just need to get out of here."

"I'm sorry ma'am," The driver replied. "But the police have roped off all of Times Square. Even if I was willing to get you out of here, I don't know if I can."

"We're not in the roped off area," The girl insisted. "Did you already talk to the police?" The driver nodded. The girl opened up her purse and the driver's eyes widened when she extended to him a pair of crisp one hundred dollar bills. "So, can you get me out of here or what?"

 _Those who live in their past end up consumed by it. The good…_

With slight hesitation, the driver took the money from her. "Where to, Miss?"

The girl paused before revealing her destination. Hopefully, he would not know whose address this was and blab to Nolan.

The driver nodded and turned around. "Right away, ma'am."

As the car began its slow procession forward, Charlotte Clarke pressed her temple up against the glass. There was still a troubling ringing in her ears and the steady pump of adrenaline in her veins. She closed her eyes and whispered to herself. "Here we go."

… _and the bad._

* * *

 **May 31, 2016 8:01 a.m.**

 **Southampton, New York**

Hailey Anderson swore under her breath as she exited the elevators at Ross & Associates. She was now officially late – and for her first day, no less. Trying not to tilt the holder full of take-out coffees she was carrying, Hailey pushed open the door to Conference Room 1, but froze when she stepped inside.

There was only one person at the table – a young man who appeared to be five or six years older than she give or take, he had curly dark hair and a very thin layer of stubble. "Sorry," She said. "Is this not the interns' meeting?"

"No, you're in the right place." The guy said, standing up and walking over to her. Before Hailey could speak, he'd already helped himself to one of the coffees on the tray, taken a sip, and started to walk back to his seat. "Hmm, black with two sugars. Exactly how I take it. Thanks, you can go now."

Hailey raised an eyebrow at his audacity. She was just about to ask him who the Hell he thought he was when the door opened behind her. "Hey Spence," The first guy said to the one who was now walking into the room. The latter was an African American twenty-something with black hair, on the shorter side but still taller than the pint-sized Hailey. "Assistant brought us coffee."

Hailey opened her mouth to say that it wasn't for them, but before she could the second guy took the remaining cup. "Cool, thanks." He said, but after taking a sip he made a face. "God, what is this?"

"Vanilla soy latte," Hailey answered. "And it was for me." She nodded towards the first boy. "And that one was for Nolan."

The first boy laughed. "Huh, a little ass-kissing on the first day I see."

The second rolled his eyes. "Don't mind Drew. He's kind of an ass in the morning, but don't worry. You'll warm up to him. You want this back?" He asked, tilting the coffee cup in her direction. Hailey smiled and took it back, grateful that he didn't seem to be quite as rude as his co-worker. "I'm Spencer, by the way. Spencer Presley."

"Hailey Anderson," Hailey replied, shaking his hand. "And I'm not an assistant, I'm an intern for Nolan Ross."

"Nice," Spencer said, leading Hailey to take a seat at the conference table. "Drew and I were interns last summer – we're junior associates now. You're gonna love it here, I promise. Nolan is fantastic. I want to be just like him someday." Hailey smiled at his enthusiasm and took the seat next to him. It was good to know that at least one of her new co-workers was friendly.

A moment later the door opened and Nolan walked in, briefcase in hand. "Good morning everyone," He said, taking his spot at the head of the table. "Can we begin?"

"Charlotte's not here yet," Hailey interjected and across the table Drew scoffed.

"Well, what did you expect?" He said, and Hailey shot him a dirty look.

"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"

Before Drew could respond the door opened and Charlotte strode in, wearing sunglasses with the signature double G's and drinking an iced coffee. "Sorry," She said once she noticed they were all staring at her, pushing her glasses to the top of her head. "Am I late? The stupid guy at the front desk forget to give me my wake-up call this morning."

Drew laughed. "See?" He whispered to Hailey, who was not amused.

"Just take a seat, Charlotte." Nolan said with an exasperated sigh. "We have things to discuss."

* * *

"Mr. Ross?"

As Nolan walked out of the meeting he looked back at the sound of his name, seeing that Hailey was following him out. "Hi, sorry," She said with a smile. "Can I…bother you for one sec?"

Nolan glanced at his smart phone. "Sure, but make it quick. I have somewhere to be after this – business in the city." While he did in fact have business in New York that day, he had a while before his meeting because he was joining Louise for brunch at Peacock Alley. He just wasn't sure he could handle talking to Hailey one-on-one right now. Not when his head was still spinning from his conversation with Olivia last night, and looking at Hailey was basically like looking at a mini-version of her.

"…Can I be blunt?" Hailey asked and Nolan nodded. "Did I do something to upset you?"

"What? No!" Nolan said. He cringed internally at how insincere he sounded.

"I mean, I know I'm your employee and we're not going to be…friends, or anything." Hailey explained. "But last night…I thought things were going well and then you sort of just, lost interest. Was it something I said or…or did?"

Nolan sighed. "Hailey, I can honestly say it's nothing that you did."

"Was it my mom?" Hailey asked, and Nolan stopped breathing for a second. Did Olivia say something to Hailey? He thought they were just going to keep that between the two of them! "I told her not to embarrass me! Did she start talking about my high school accomplishments?" Hailey continued, allowing Nolan to exhale when he saw that Hailey had no clue about him and Olivia. "Oh my God, did she show you my baby pictures?"

Nolan laughed. "No, nothing like that. Your…" He paused, growing serious. "Your mother loves you. You're very lucky."

Hailey smiled. "Thank you."

Charlotte peeked her head out of the conference room, interrupting them. "Hey Hailey, you wanna grab a cup of coffee?"

"Sure," Hailey called back, before turning back to Nolan. "I really appreciate your time, Mr. Ross."

Nolan paused. "You can just…call me Nolan. Mr. Ross was my father."

Hailey smiled, turning to walk back towards the conference room. "Nolan. Okay, thanks."

Nolan watched her go, his smile fading once she'd shut the door behind her. Hailey was bright and extremely qualified for this job, and he would never begrudge her an opportunity because of his history with Olivia. But when he looked at her? Looking at her was like stepping back in time…

* * *

 **June 3, 1995 7:59 a.m.**

 **The Bronx, New York**

"Liv? Liv!"

Eighteen year old Olivia Anderson looked up as Nolan Ross shot her another playfully annoyed look. "Calm down – I can feel your leg bouncing from over here. Just breathe."

Olivia nodded and sucked in a deep breath, trying to still her antsy leg. "We've been waiting awhile," She said. "Is that normal?"

"First, it's been two minutes," Nolan said with a slight smirk. "And secondly, visits don't begin until eight. We just got through registration quickly." He'd been coming here for nearly two years, and had become very familiar with the many rules. Many of the guards even knew when to expect him – he came as soon as they opened every Saturday, when he could make the trek down from school. When he'd brought a companion with him today, the woman at registration had even made an offhanded comment about it.

Olivia sat up a little straighter as the door opened and the person they'd come here to see walked in. He looked slightly thinner, his cheeks hollow, and the bags under his eyes had deepened. However, he still offered a weak smile when their eyes locked. He always looked forward to Nolan's visits - it was one of the very few things in life that gave him pleasure these days.

"Well, this must be the girl you've told me all about." David said as he sat down at the crude, metal table. The corrections officer in the corner kept his eyes trained on them, one hand resting on his gun.

After all, they were meeting with a supposed terrorist.

"You talk about me?" Olivia asked, glancing at Nolan. She couldn't help but smile at this, despite the circumstances.

"Maybe sometimes," Nolan teased, which only caused Olivia's grin to widen.

"You must be Olivia," David said.

"Yes, Mr. Clarke. Olivia Anderson," She extended her hand for him to shake out of habit, only to realize that with his shackled hands he couldn't possibly reciprocate the gesture. Olivia quickly pulled her hands back into her lap, cheeks flushed, while Nolan and David only chuckled.

"You can call me David," The latter said. "Any friend of Nolan's is a friend of mine,"

Olivia smiled. "Thank you, sir...I mean, David."

"So, only five days left of the trial," Nolan said, addressing the elephant in the room. "How do you feel?"

David only shrugged. "I'm just ready for this to be over."

"You're innocent," Olivia interjected. "We all know it, and the jury knows it too."

David gave her a small half-smile, then he looked to Nolan. "Still has faith in the world. That's good - don't let this one go."

* * *

 **May 31, 2016 8:45 a.m.**

"Mmm, do I smell Jack Porter's world famous pancakes?"

Jack smiled as he felt a familiar pair of arms encircle his waist. "Blueberry." He clarified. "Someone's favorite."

Amanda smirked into his skin, burying her face into the side of his neck, a hand running across his exposed chest. "The only thing I like better than the pancakes is the guy who makes them."

"Oh, is that so?"

"That's what you get for not wearing a shirt."

"Maybe I would if you weren't wearing it,"

Amanda smiled and pulled away, sitting on top of the kitchen counter and tugging at the collar of her husband's ratty old T-shirt. "It's all part of my master plan," She explained. "I'm just going to keep taking your shirts, until you have none left. Then you won't be able to wear a shirt ever again."

Jack raised an eyebrow at her. "And what if I just go out and buy more?"

"I'll take all your credit cards,"

Jack laughed. "Do you want to go see if Carl is up?"

"I think we can give him ten more minutes," Amanda said, before grabbing her husband by the drawstrings of his pajama pants and pulling him towards her. Jack smiled and kissed her deeply, while she wrapped her legs around his waist.

"The pancakes are gonna burn," He remarked between kisses.

"I like them crispy anyways." They kissed for a few moments longer before Jack pulled away, and Amanda frowned at him. "Okay, your pancakes aren't burning right this second."

"It's not that," He said, shaking his head. He placed one of his hands on her cheek, brushed away a stray piece of her hair. "You're happy, right?"

Amanda gave him a look. "Do you seriously not know the answer to that question?"

"Maybe I'm being paranoid," Jack explained. "It's just, now that Nolan's back full time I was wondering…if you missed it."

"If I missed revenge?" Amanda asked and Jack nodded in confirmation. "Jack, of course not. I was miserable as Emily Thorne, you know that." She paused and smiled slightly, touching the back of his neck. "You make me insanely, stupidly happy. Don't doubt that."

He smiled and nodded, pressing one last quick kiss to her lips. "Okay, I'm sorry. I was being dumb. How about you go get Carl up while I finish breakfast?"

She kissed his cheek and climbed down from the counter, while he went back to the stove. Jack watched her as she started to head for the stairs, his T-shirt riding up and exposing the panties she'd worn to bed last night.

Amanda looked over her shoulder and smirked at him. "You checking me out, Mr. Porter?"

"You bet I am, Mrs. Porter." She laughed in response.

She made him insanely, stupidly happy too.

* * *

"You're late," Louise said as Nolan slid into her favorite table at Peacock Alley, shortly after ten o'clock.

"Sorry," Nolan said. "I umm…got caught up at the office."

Their waiter walked up to the table, a napkin folded over his arm. "Hello, welcome to the Waldorf Astoria. Can I interest you two in a beverage?"

"Two mimosas please, sweetheart," Louise said cheerily. "Hold the orange juice."

Nolan gave her a look. "A mimosa without orange juice is just champagne."

"I know."

"It's a little early for that, don't you think?"

Louise shrugged. "As they say, five o'clock somewhere."

The waiter smiled. "Coming right up,"

Once they were alone, Louise leaned forward eagerly, the silverware shaking when she placed her elbows on the table. "So, my friend Janelle was asking about you."

Nolan nearly choked on his water. "Is that the one who sleeps with anything that moves?"

"The interior decorator," Louise clarified. "She's very smart, very pretty, and she wants to go on a date with you."

"I told you, Louise." Nolan said. "I'm not interested."

"All you want to do is to mope about some girl you haven't seen in almost twenty years," Louise said, shoving a mini breakfast pastry into her mouth, while Nolan looked down at his lap. "Hell, back then I was ten years old and still playing with my Barbies."

"I have seen her," Nolan blurted out.

"What's that?" Louise said, her mouth full of Danish.

"I saw her, last night. At your party."

Louise's eyes widened, and Nolan thought she might choke. She placed both her hands over her heart. "Was it magical?" She asked. "When you saw each other was it like…like no time had passed at all?"

"Not exactly," Nolan said and Louise stared at him, clearly waiting for details. "After she broke up with me, she got married. She has a daughter – my new intern, Hailey."

"Oh I met her, she's such a lovely girl." Louise said. She paused, realizing what he had just said. "You mean her mama is your first love?" Nolan nodded. "Why this is…this is serendipity! Nolan, why are you not professing your undying devotion right now?"

"She's moved on, Louise." He said, just as the waiter dropped off their drinks. "If her husband hadn't left, she probably would still be married to some other guy."

"But her husband _did_ leave," Louise persisted. "Don't you see? The universe might've brought you back together for a reason! This is a sign - the two of you might be soulmates!"

"I don't know if I believe in soulmates anymore," Nolan said. "Love isn't enough, I know that. I've been in love plenty of times, but that doesn't mean it worked out. And why? Because of the choices we made in those relationship. Olivia chose to walk away from what we had instead of sticking around to make it work. And she wouldn't have even gone to your party if she knew I was there. That's the truth."

Louise frowned and raised her glass dejectedly. "Well then, here's to drinking early."

Nolan raised his own glass and half-heartedly clinked it against hers. "Cheers."

* * *

"You copy those case files yet, intern?"

Charlotte cast a glare at Drew as he strode into the break room, inviting himself to the seat next to her without asking. "Not yet," She said, taking a sip of her second coffee of the day and getting up to make her third. "How do you take your coffee?" She asked.

"As black as my soul," Drew said and he smiled brightly at Charlotte's look of annoyance. "Come on, intern. It was a joke."

"Not really," Charlotte said, handing a cup of coffee to him. "And why do you keep calling me 'intern'? I have a name, you know. It's Charlotte."

"Because," Drew said. This time, instead of taking her original seat, Charlotte sat as far away from him as possible. "It's nice to remind myself that people like you aren't starting off at the top for once."

"People like me?" Charlotte parroted. "What the Hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Rich girls," Drew explained nonchalantly. "Trust fund babies who were born with silver spoons in their mouths and grew up on Daddy's money and were taught that the whole world was theirs for the taking. People who could buy their way into anything."

Charlotte slammed her coffee cup down and leaned forward, her arms crossed indignantly over her chest. "You don't know anything about me," She said. "I did well in school because I worked hard and I got into college because I worked hard and I got this job because of my own accomplishments. None of this was handed to me. I'm not going to lie and say that I never took my family's money for granted – because I did. But I'm not that girl anymore, and I am sure as Hell not a Grayson. You don't know a damn thing about me."

Drew smirked and stood up. "Whatever you say, intern." He raised his mug to her. "Thanks for the coffee, by the way."

Charlotte watched him walk out, her hand clenched around her cup so tightly her knuckles turned white.

She _really_ hated that guy.

* * *

 **June 3, 1995 4:10 p.m.**

They stayed at Rikers all day, until visiting hours ended at four. Olivia took a deep breath as she stepped outside, breathing in fresh air for the first time in hours. She couldn't help but think of poor David – cooped up in that prison all the time, not able to leave at the end of the day like them.

"I hope that wasn't too boring for you," Nolan said as they started to walk back towards his car.

"It wasn't," Olivia insisted. "I know you can't see him as much as you'd like and well…I really liked meeting him. He was even better than I imagined."

Nolan paused, touching Olivia's arm and halting her mid-step. "I love you," He blurted out, and Olivia's eyes went wide at this unexpected declaration. "I've been feeling this way for a long time, but now I know for sure. I love you, Olivia. And not in a just friends way – I'm in love with you. And I just wanted you to know that."

She looked up at him, a grin breaking out across her face. "Kiss me." And he did.

They pulled apart after a long moment, both of them breathless, their foreheads pressed together. "We just had our first kiss," Nolan said. "And in the middle of a prison parking lot."

Olivia laughed. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

* * *

 **May 31, 2016 11:35 a.m.**

"Hello? Earth to Olivia?"

Olivia snapped out of her flashback and glanced up, finding Brett Chamberlain standing at the foot of her desk, hands on his hips. The CEO of top Wall Street firm Chamberlain Financial – which he'd started a few years back after leaving his cushiony job at a now rival investment bank – he had a reputation for being ruthless and was intimidating to most people, tall and imposing with salt-and-pepper hair. To Olivia, however, he was simply her boss.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Chamberlain." Olivia said, straightening out her blouse and sitting up in her chair. "I was just um…thinking about making an itinerary for your investors' meeting today."

Chamberlain nodded. "Did you confirm my business lunch at Minetta for this afternoon?"

"Yes sir, I did."

"My usual table? Mr. Enomoto has always been a major client, I need to impress him."

Olivia nodded. "Yes, sir. Everything will go perfectly. You'll do great."

Chamberlain smiled at her. "What would I do without you, Anderson? I swear, you're the secret to my success."

"It's nothing, sir."

Chamberlain reached across her desk and handed her a piece of paper. "Can you go onto my computer while I'm gone and proofread the latest draft of the Holloway contract for me?"

She gave him an incredulous look. "You're giving me your computer password?"

"Anderson, you've been my personal secretary since I started this company. If I can't trust you, who can I trust?"

"I thought you said that you can't trust anyone on Wall Street, sir."

Chamberlain cracked a grin. "It's a tough world out there, Anderson. Now, copy this down." Olivia picked up a pen and looked up at him obediently. "Password is 555k02se13."

"Alright," Olivia said, capping her pen once she'd written down the letters and numbers in the proper order. "I'll get right on that."

"Great. I'll see you before my meeting?"

She nodded. "Yes, sir."

As Chamberlain walked off to the elevators Olivia turned her attention to her work. She stashed the password Chamberlain had given her into her desk drawer for safekeeping – the one that locked. She turned back to her computer and tried to focus on her typing when she was once again interrupted.

"Olivia?"

She looked up and nearly fell out of her chair when she saw who was standing before her. "Nolan," She said, in shock. "H…hi. What are you doing here?"

"I know this is your place of work and everything," Nolan replied, shoving his hands in his pockets. "But as cheesy as it sounds I was in the neighborhood and I just…wanted to talk about something."

Olivia sat up a little straighter and ran her hands through her hair, brushing it out of her face. "Okay," She said, playing it cool. "So…talk."

"I just wanted to talk…about Hailey."

"What about her?" Olivia said, sound almost defensive. Hailey always said she was a mama bear, and that was probably true. She was very protective of her only child.

"You didn't tell her about us, did you?" Nolan asked, but then his eyes widened. "I mean, not that there's an _us_ to tell her about. Just that we used to go out I mean but you know we…don't…any…more…"

Olivia couldn't help but smile at his clear attempt at backtracking. "I won't tell her anything if you don't. It doesn't take a genius to realize I was a year under you at MIT, but for all she knows the first time we met was yesterday. I understand that you're her new boss, and you don't want her to think of you as the guy who used to date her mother."

Nolan nodded. "Right. Uh-huh, that's umm…that's exactly what I mean."

"Well you don't have to worry, Nolan." She reinforced. "The past is the past. I've moved on with my life, so have you."

"Right," He repeated. "We both moved on."

A moment passed in awkward silence. "Well, I'll…see you around maybe?" Olivia said.

"Right," Nolan affirmed. "Maybe."

Olivia smirked. "That's the third sentence you've started with 'right'."

"Right," Nolan said again and she could almost see him mentally smack himself. "I uh…gotta get going."

She chuckled. "Bye, Nolan."

"Bye, Olivia."

Olivia knew she should get back to her work but she couldn't help but watch him go out of nostalgia. She thought about that day in June when they went to Rikers Island to see David Clarke, about how afterwards he kissed her again and she watched him walk to his dorm. She smiled, thinking about all the amazing times they'd shared – holding hands across the table on their first real date, many late night study sessions that included more kissing than studying, making a makeshift Christmas tree in her dorm room out of clamps from the science lab that year they were snowed in on campus. Of course they'd had bad times too – him cancelling dates to try and find investors for NolCorp, or spending all night searching for evidence to clear David instead of sleeping next to her, her having to go home for Thanksgiving break alone because he had too much on his plate to take a vacation. But in her mind…all of the good seemed to outweigh the bad.

Olivia knew without a doubt that that day at the prison had been the day she fell in love with Nolan Ross – but she couldn't remember the day when she fell out. Maybe because she never did.

So when exactly had she decided that love wasn't worth fighting for anymore?

* * *

Nolan looked up at the Clarke house, the porch lights illuminating it in the increasing darkness of early evening, his sand-filled dress shoes in his hands. Somehow his impromptu sunset walk on the beach had led him here. Walking up the steps to the back porch, he thought about the seemingly picture perfect beach house where his now best friend had once pinned him against the wall on that fateful Memorial Day. He chuckled lightly to himself, thinking about how that same house had become Amanda and Jack's home.

"Nolan?" Amanda said, having spotted him before he could even knock. "Everything okay?"

"Just…just a long day at work." He said. "Mind if I come in?"

Without hesitation, she stepped aside to grant him access. "Hey Jack," She called out to her husband, who was currently at work at the kitchen. "Put out a place setting for Nolan, please."

"Uncle Nolan!" Little Carl said excitedly, the boy jumping up from his seat to greet one of his favorite people. His enthusiasm woke up Bay – the name Carl had christened the family's yellow lab – who had been sleeping soundly in his dog bed.

"Hey, buddy." Nolan said, scooping him up into his arms. "So, I know it isn't your birthday quite yet, but I found something I think you'll like and I wanted to give it to you now. Is that okay?" Carl nodded eagerly and Nolan dug into his pocket, pulling out something wrapped in tissue paper. Carl opened it readily, his eyes going wide with a child's wonder as he took in his present. "It's a nautical compass." Nolan explained. "Now you can finally convince your old man to teach you how to sail. You like it?"

Carl nodded vigorously. "Daddy," He asked Jack. "Can I go show Uncle Nolan my toy boats?"

Jack smiled. "Sure, go ahead."

"Thank you, Daddy!" Carl said happily. Nolan lowered him back onto the ground and the little boy enthusiastically led him upstairs to his room. Nolan dutifully followed.

Amanda smiled at her stepson's sheer adorableness before joining Jack in the kitchen. "He's really precious."

Jack, however, seemed deep in thought. "Are you sure you don't miss it?" He asked, and Amanda knew immediately what he was talking about. "I promise I'll let it go after this just…just tell me one more time?"

Amanda closed the distance between them and grabbed his face, kissing him full on the mouth. "No more revenge." She said. "I promise."

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 7:50 a.m.**

 _It is normal to think about the past._

"Louise?"

Nolan walked forward when he spotted a familiar redhead a few feet in front of him. Louise turned around, confirming his suspicion. She marched towards him determinedly, her iPad nestled into the crook of her elbow. "Nolan!" She said. "Did you hear?"

"Hear what Louise? I think everyone on the planet knows about the bomb by this point." Nolan replied. He was distracted when he saw red dripping down her neck. "Are you okay? Your ear is bleeding."

 _But sometimes when we look back on the past, we idealize it._

Louise waved his concern off. "My other one works just fine. And that's not what I meant. Look at this." She shoved her iPad at Nolan, who was caught off guard by this action.

 _We make it sound like it was a simpler time, remember the good and not the bad._

"What is this that I'm reading?" Nolan asked.

"They call themselves The Liberators," Louise explained. "Short for The American Liberation Party. This is their website."

"You mean those far-right, elitist, xenophobic jerks who think that everything would be better if we went back to the days of racism and homophobia, kept out all the immigrants and let the one percent rule the world?" Nolan asked.

Louise nodded in confirmation. "They're taking credit for this attack, Nolan. Said they did it to make a stand on their political policies. The law firm we went to today just tried an alleged Liberator for assault."

"But the police can't make an arrest because they don't know where The Liberators are or who most of the members are." Nolan filled in. Louise paused for a moment, biting her lip. "What?" He asked her. "Is there something else you want to tell me?"

 _We yearn for something we can never have, and we try to get it back._

"I heard some cops talking," Louise began hesitantly. "Nolan, they…they think we might be connected to it."

* * *

 _But people should not repeat the past._

Across town, a still shaken Charlotte Clarke knocked on the door to Apartment 6A. The door opened almost immediately and the apartment's resident was visibly shocked to see her standing there, staring back with panic in her eyes. "Charlotte? What are you doing here?"

She shook her head, suddenly feeling like she might cry. "Something terrible's happened." She said, her voice quavering. "I...I need you."

He took her in, from her dusty clothes to her shaking body to her disheveled hair. "Come in," Drew said. Wordlessly, Charlotte followed him inside.

How had today gone so wrong?

 _That's when it all blows up in our faces._


	3. Private Lives

**A/N** : I don't have much to say about this chapter, but here's my current update schedule: there will be another new chapter next Sunday and then one the Sunday after, but after Chapter 5 there won't be another chapter for 2-3 weeks. Chapter 5 is basically my equivalent of a mid-season finale so consider it your mid-season hiatus. There's a reveal this chapter so tell me what you think in the reviews. Enjoy :)

 **Disclaimer** : I am just a fan of _Revenge_ trying to keep this awesome show alive in my stories.

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 8:15 a.m.  
Manhattan, New York**

"Are you okay? You've been in there for a while…"

 _A friend of mine once said that there are two sides to every person._

Charlotte watched as more dust and dirt made its slow descent down the drain, while water from the shower-head continued to beat steadily on her back. She didn't know exactly how long she'd been in there – the water had turned cold above her and she'd scrubbed her skin so hard it turned pink. Bruises were blooming across her body from where she'd been whacked by rubble. In her head, she kept replaying it over and over. What had happened. What she'd seen.

 _The side that we show to the world, and the one we keep hidden inside._

"Do you wanna talk about it?" Drew called out from the other side of the bathroom door - he received no response. "Charlotte, are you listening to me?"

A moment later the shower stopped, the door opened and Charlotte stepped out, her wet body wrapped in a towel and her hair clinging to her face. Drew backed up to give her space, sitting himself down on his bed.

"I saw someone," Charlotte began hesitantly. "Before the bomb went off. Someone who wasn't supposed to be there."

Drew nodded encouragingly. "Okay. Who was it?"

Charlotte bit her lip, so hard she drew blood. "I knew him." She said. "He wasn't supposed to be there. He disappeared just before the bomb went off, as if he knew…as if he knew…"

"As if he knew there was a bomb?" Drew filled in and she nodded. Charlotte sat down on the edge of the bed, her arm just an inch or two away from his, holding her towel close to her body as she stared off into space.

 _Everyone has kept a secret, told a lie, acted like someone they are not._

"I have to go warn them," She blurted out after a long moment, suddenly rising and fetching her discarded clothes from the bathroom floor. "They might be in danger…"

"Don't wear that," Drew said, cutting her off before she could put her dirty outfit back on. He opened his dresser drawer and pulled out a Columbia T-shirt and a pair of sweatpants. "I know they're not as glamorous, but at least they're clean."

Charlotte offered a weak attempt at a smile as she took them from him. "Thank you,"

Before she could walk back into the bathroom, Drew grabbed her arm. "And I'm going with you."

"Drew," Charlotte began. "You don't have to, you've done enough al-" She was cut off when unexpectedly Drew grabbed her face and pulled her in, pressing a strong and steady kiss to her lips. She lost her grip on the clothes, which fell to the floor at their feet, her hands instead reaching up to grab ahold of Drew by his hair.

 _Behind closed doors, we do things we may never have done if someone was watching._

They finally pulled apart once they both needed air, Drew looking deep into Charlotte's eyes. "I won't let you go back there alone."

 _But that begs the question…_

She nodded, barely able to form a coherent thought – she was too caught off guard by the mind-blowing kiss she'd just experienced. "Come with me."

 _Is this person that you are letting into your life who you think they are?_

* * *

 **June 13, 2016 2:35 p.m.**

 **Southampton, New York**

"Still making copies, intern?"

Charlotte did not look up from the copy machine as she heard the voice of an unwelcome visitor. "Not that it's any of your business, Drew," She said, in the most professional way she could. "But I have to leave early today. It's my sister and brother-in-law's first wedding anniversary. I'm throwing them a party."

"I know," Drew said haughtily, walking over to stand next to her. "I was invited."

Charlotte looked up, scowling at him. "I didn't invite you."

"You didn't," He replied. "But Nolan did. I am, after all, one of his favorite employees."

"God knows why," Charlotte scoffed, picking up her copies and starting to make her way back to her desk.

Drew, however, couldn't take a hint. "Trust me, I don't like spending all this time with you either."

"Why are you following me then?" She snapped.

"We work together," He explained, then he smiled cheekily. "And I want to see if you're really the spoiled brat everyone says you are."

Charlotte glared at him. "And I'm trying to convince myself you're not such a pompous asshole, but it's not working."

Drew smiled and backed away. "Well on that note, I'll see you tonight. Save a seat for me, intern." Charlotte only rolled her eyes in response.

She really, _really_ hated that guy.

* * *

Meanwhile, Nolan walked out of his office and immediately did a double take. "Olivia?"

Sure enough, the woman standing in the lobby was in fact Olivia. "Hi," She said, smiling at him. "I was just stopping by to take Hailey to lunch. That is, if you can spare her."

"Of course," Nolan said, walking over to her. "You're her mom, I think that gives you dibs."

"Great," Olivia said. "So, how's everything going so far?"

"She's a total natural," Nolan replied. "Very…bright. I like that about her. She reminds me of you." Olivia blushed and Nolan looked down, embarrassed once he realized what he'd said. "Anyway, will I see you at Amanda and Jack's anniversary party tonight?"

Olivia offered up a sad smile and shook her head. "Sorry, no. I have to work late tonight. My boss called me this morning, this late minute thing came up."

Nolan nodded. "Well, that's too bad."

"Anyways," She said. "Mind if I just go back and get Hailey? Reservations."

"Sure, third door on the right." Olivia smiled thankfully and started to walk away, Nolan watching her retreating form.

She spun back around. "Hey Nolan? It was nice seeing you."

Nolan smiled. "You too." Olivia smiled and waved goodbye to him, before leaving. Once she was gone, he sighed loudly.

This hadn't gone exactly how he'd wanted but it was...a start, at least.

* * *

"– and in other pop culture news, America's favorite couple Amanda Clarke and Jack Porter are celebrating their first wedding anniversary today."

Amanda paused her channel surfing when she landed on some entertainment news program. Usually she didn't watch things like this but she couldn't help but be curious – especially after what Nolan had told them about the public's opinion of their relationship.

"I have to say," One of the two co-anchors said. "These two are one of my favorite celebrity couples. You have root for them after everything they've been through." Amanda couldn't help but laugh to herself about the way these two women were discussing her relationship with her husband – it was kind of funny to her. They made them sound larger than life or something – like they weren't even real people with real lives and a real relationship. It was pretty hilarious.

Though suddenly, someone said something that made her stop smiling. "Hopefully soon we'll be announcing some baby news from them?" The other anchor said, causing her co-worker to laugh.

"Oh," She said. "Their children would be so gorgeous! Hopefully a pregnancy is on the horizon?"

"If Amanda and Jack just happen to be watching right now," The other said. "Let this be their hint that we're all ready –" But Amanda didn't let her finish, instead turning the TV off and then throwing the remote to the other end of the couch, her face hot with anger.

"Hey," She heard her husband say. When she turned around she saw Jack standing at the bottom of the stairs, watching her and clearly having heard all of it. "Don't listen to them."

Amanda tried to hide her dismay - not wanting him to see how much the comment had secretly hurt her - but her lower lip betrayed her by beginning to quiver. "It's just…listening to them say things like that…"

"They're idiots, okay?" Jack insisted, moving to sit down next to her. "They're insensitive, and our personal lives are none of their business." Amanda nodded in agreement, taking his hand in hers in response.

She had told Jack about her inability to conceive before they were married – she wanted him to know that if he chose to go through with the wedding, he would never be able to have another child. She didn't want Jack to resent her someday because he gave up his chance to have more children when he married her. Jack, however, had told her that she mattered more to him – if he couldn't have a second child with her, then he didn't want one. And even though she loved being married to Jack and she loved being Carl's stepmother, things like this were just cruel reminders that she couldn't make her husband a father again. Sometimes, she felt like it was just one more thing he'd lost because of her.

Now Jack pushed her hair behind her ear, running a finger across her cheek. "Do you remember our honeymoon? When we took the boat up to that bed and breakfast on Martha's Vineyard, just the two of us?"

Amanda smiled at the memory. "How could I forget? It was a great weekend."

"You looked so beautiful," Jack told her. "And happier than I'd ever seen you. I remember we went on that walk on the beach, and you wore that long white dress, with the lace…"

Amanda laughed, a wistful smile on her face. "And you threw me over your shoulder when the tide came in so it wouldn't get wet. Yeah, I remember."

"You should wear that dress tonight. And think about all the good memories we have." She nodded and he kissed her cheek. "How about we take Carl to the park before we drop him off at the sitter's?"

"Okay."

Jack kissed her one more time before he headed back upstairs to retrieve his son. Amanda watched him go and once he was out of sight, she allowed her composed facade to drop.

Despite all of the good times they'd had since, sometimes she couldn't help but think about everything they had lost.

* * *

The party began after sunset, on a pristine strip of beach a little way's away from Amanda and Jack's home. Charlotte had gone to the trouble of finding the spot where the married couple had met twenty plus years earlier. Tables and chairs had been set out for the guests, the party illuminated by strings of mini paper lanterns as the sun set along the pink horizon.

Nolan found his plus one for the evening waiting for him by the makeshift dance floor, sipping punch. "Charlotte's outdone herself on this one," He told Louise, greeting her with friendly cheek kisses.

"It's a lovely party," The Southern belle agreed, taking Nolan's arm when he offered it as they went to find their seats. "So, have you seen anyone that tickles your fancy yet?"

Nolan sighed. "This again, Louise?"

"Well, I figured if I can't set you up I could at least encourage you to pick out a guy or gal yourself," Louise explained. She smiled forlornly and touched his arm. "You know I just want happiness for you, Nolan."

"I _am_ happy," Nolan said and Louise raised an eyebrow at him doubtfully, but said nothing.

The two friends slipped into their seats – at the happy couple's head table, of course. "That reminds me," Louise said. "Will Olivia be making an appearance tonight?"

He shook his head. "No, apparently she had to work late. But Hailey will be here."

"As if on cue," Louise replied, gesturing across the party. Nolan turned to see Charlotte and Hailey making their grand entrance, arm in arm and joking about something. When Charlotte's eyes landed on them she smiled and waved, before leading Hailey over.

"Hi, thank you for coming." She said, greeting both Nolan and Louise warmly. "Louise, you remember Hailey right?"

"Of course," Louise said, plastering on her biggest grin and shaking Hailey's hand. "Sit down, why don't you darlin? I just want to know _all_ about you." She winced slightly as Nolan kicked her under the table.

A few moments later the other guests began to clap as the couple of the hour made their entrance, Amanda and Jack reluctantly accepting their applause before they walked over to join the rest of their friends. "Well, a year later and you two still look like you belong at the top of a wedding cake." Charlotte said, hugging her sister and brother-in-law.

"Thank you for this lovely party, Charlotte." Amanda told her. "You didn't have to do all this for us."

"Don't be silly," Her sister insisted. "I wanted to do something nice for you two. This night will be perf-"

"Well, well, Amanda Clarke and Jack Porter, in the flesh."

Charlotte's face fell as she saw Drew approaching, Spencer at his heels. Great, just great… "So nice to finally meet you two," Drew said, a cocky smile on his face. "I'm Drew Burton, and this is Spencer Presley. Nolan's employees. I don't believe we've had the pleasure of meeting before."

Jack accepted the handshake he offered. "Nolan's told us a lot about you both. Why don't you both sit down?"

"I don't think –" Charlotte started to say, but Drew cut her off.

"We'd love to," He said. "Thanks so much."

Charlotte scowled as they all settled around the table, Drew beginning to eagerly talk about himself. She cursed in her mind and stomped away in a tizzy without another word. She needed a drink – or ten.

* * *

As she examined the contents of the food table, Hailey felt a hand touch her shoulder. "Anything good?" Spencer asked, standing by her side.

"I don't know what half these things are," Hailey said with a laugh as she took in the array of typical Hamptons party foods which Charlotte had selected – five different types of caviar, a variety of exotic fishes, and hors-d'oeuvres with names she could not pronounce.

"Well better put something in your stomach before you party the night away," Spencer said, nodding towards the dance floor where Louise had roped a hesitant Nolan as her partner. Meanwhile Charlotte was at the bar and Drew had excused himself, leaving Amanda and Jack alone for an intimate conversation.

"Yeah, no." Hailey said, shutting him down. "I'm a terrible dancer."

"Oh, not me." Spencer replied. "I can do a really good sprinkler." He demonstrated the move for her, causing Hailey to burst into laughter.

"You know what sounds even better than a dance?" Hailey said and Spencer shook his head no. "A cheeseburger. A greasy cheeseburger, with French fries. And maybe even a chocolate milkshake."

"Sounds awesome," Spencer chuckled. "Maybe we can duck out early and go to a drive thru. I'll buy."

Hailey grinned. "Okay," She said, taking his arm. "You're totally my hero."

* * *

Louise giggled as she and Nolan returned to the table, their presence diverting Amanda and Jack's attentions from each other to their guests. "That girl over there?" She said, pointing subtly to a woman across the party. Amanda and Jack both looked over her shoulder to see, while Nolan rolled his eyes and took a sip of his Cristal. "She's totally checking Nolan out."

"She is not!" Nolan insisted, but his three friends just looked at him incredulously – the leggy brunette Louise was referring to would turn her head to glance at them every few seconds. "Oh come on, she's probably looking at you guys – you are the couple of the hour. And you're both way more famous than me now that Ams is Ams again anyway."

Louise raised an eyebrow at him. "Didn't you make the Time 100 this year?"

"I was 79," Nolan conceded. "But that's beside the point." His friends chuckled, and Nolan raised his glass. "To Ams and Jack, the greatest couple I know. The two of you are my best friends, and I couldn't imagine giving away my partner in revenge to anyone else. We had a really good run Ams, and you deserve to finally be happy. So cheers to that."

Jack and Louise both grinned and accepted his proposed toast, but by her husband's side Amanda's mind began to wander at Nolan's words. She glanced at Hailey and Spencer, both of them laughing and doing silly dance moves, then caught sight of Drew talking up some people with a drink in his hand, and finally spotted Charlotte by the bar, taking it all in. For the first time, it was hitting her – Nolan had become the sensei now. So what did that make her?

Jack nudged her, snapping her back to the present. "Hey, you alright?"

She forced a smile. "Of course." She said, not wanting him to sense the uncertainty making its way through her mind. "Happy anniversary."

* * *

Charlotte looked up from her cocktail as she saw Drew walk over to the bar. "Don't even start with me right now, Drew." She said. "I already listened to you kiss my sister and brother-in-law's asses for the past hour, I'm not nearly drunk enough for this."

Drew leaned up against the bar, invading her personal space, and Charlotte stepped back to get away from him. "That a Sex on the Beach?"

She eyed him hesitantly and took a sip. "Yeah…"

"You know, you're really hot when you're angry."

Charlotte nearly choked on her drink. "Excuse me?"

"You heard what I said," Drew slurred. "I told myself you were gonna be some rich bitch and I wasn't gonna like you. And I've been trying to deny it, but you're hot. Like, really hot."

"And you're really drunk," Charlotte snapped at him. It was obvious that he was wasted, so wasted he didn't know what he was saying.

"So what if I am? Maybe against my better judgement I actually want to get to know you." Drew leaned towards her and – without thinking – a surprised Charlotte flicked her drink at him.

Drew recoiled when it made contact with his face, and all around them everyone went silent when they saw what had just occurred. The colorful liquid dripped down Drew's white shirt, then onto his khaki pants. He looked up, wiping it out of his eyes, his mouth slightly agape.

"Hey!" Spencer called out, walking over briskly with Hailey at his heels. He grabbed Drew by the arm, pulling him back. "That's enough. Come on, let's go. I'm taking you home."

"Do you want me to come with you?" Hailey asked and Spencer cracked a smile at her.

"We'll probably have to take a rain check on that burger,"

"That's fine," She insisted. "But you're gonna need help getting him home, he's totally out of it."

Spencer nodded. "Yeah, sure. Come on, my car is this way." After she waved bye to Charlotte – who was only able to smile meekly in response – she took Drew's other arm and helped Spencer begin to drag him up the beach.

Grabbing a napkin for her now sticky fingers, Charlotte tried to compose herself. Inside though, she was screaming. From across the party Amanda, Jack, Nolan and Louise were all looking at her – Amanda concerned, Jack unsure, Nolan slightly amused, Louise mortified.

Tonight had officially been a complete disaster.

* * *

"Okay, he's asleep." Spencer said as he rejoined Hailey in the hall outside Drew's Manhattan apartment, where she'd gone to wait while Spencer instructed a still inebriated Drew to take off his wet clothes. "I'm sorry about how tonight turned out."

"It's not your fault," Hailey said as the two of them stepped into the elevator, Spencer pressing the button for the ground floor. "And I actually had a pretty good time, despite how the night ended."

"I do promise to get you that burger someday," Spencer told her. "And the fries, and the chocolate shake. Even though I'm more of a vanilla guy."

Hailey laughed. "Good. I could umm…really use another friend around here. Charlotte and I have gotten really close but…" She shook her head. "This is her world, not mine."

"Well, we'll be outsiders together." Spencer said and Hailey smiled at him. "Come on – let's go."

* * *

Hailey reached the beach house where she and Olivia were currently staying half past eleven. She waved goodbye to Spencer, who returned the action before pulling his Jeep out of the driveway and heading off. As she walked up to the front porch she saw all the lights were off – her mother must've already been asleep.

Hailey stepped inside and tried to be as quiet as possible, so as not to disturb her sleeping mother. She was halfway up the stairs when she heard something – a loud noise. "Hello?" She whispered timidly, only to receive no response. "Mom? Are you up?" Hesitantly, Hailey peeked into the master bedroom. What she saw made her recoil in surprise.

She saw her mother first – catching a glimpse of Olivia's arched back, her mused hair. "Quiet," She whispered in between sultry kisses with the other – also naked – occupant of her bed. "Hailey will be home any minute."

"Oh don't worry," He whispered as he caressed her face. "When I'm done with you, you'll be the one who's being loud." They both laughed and Hailey backed away from the doorway in horror, just as her mother and Brett Chamberlain collapsed back down onto the sheets…

* * *

Nolan aroused himself from slumber when he heard the knocking at his door. He slipped on his robe and went to go see what was going on, wondering if perhaps one of his clients needed him for an emergency. He opened the door and rubbed his eyes, seeing not a client standing before him but someone completely different. "Amanda? What's going on?"

"Can I come in?" She asked and Nolan nodded, stepping aside for her to enter. She was still wearing the long, white dress she'd worn to the party – it was clear she hadn't slept at all, and there was sand on her hem like she'd been walking on the beach for a while.

"Do you know what time it is?" Nolan asked, while Amanda stopped in his foyer, turning around to face him. "Are you okay? Is Jack alright?"

"I just wanted to ask you something." Amanda explained and Nolan looked at her, waiting to hear what was so important that it couldn't wait for the next morning. She was silent for a long moment, clearly deep in thought. "I never thought I would miss it, you know?"

"Miss what, Ams?" Nolan questioned, stepping closer to her.

"Revenge," Amanda clarified, and Nolan could see that she was slightly emotional. "I know it was such a dark time for me, and I let it take over my life. But I…I miss having a purpose, you know? Something which I could dedicate myself to."

"Ams…" Nolan began hesitantly, but his friend didn't stop.

"I love Jack," She insisted. "With all of my heart, I do. But when you and I worked together we shared a greater goal and I loved that. I've spent the past year living in my little bubble, playing house with Jack and Carl, but now Jack has the beach club and Carl is about to go to preschool…So what about me? For the first time in so long…I have nothing I can work towards. I don't know what to do with myself."

"Amanda, what are you trying to say?"

She looked down and didn't say anything – Nolan was starting to think she'd changed her mind and realized how silly she was being when she finally spoke. "I want to work with you again." She said. "I know I gave up revenge but – this isn't revenge, exactly. It's justice. There's a difference. And I miss being your partner, Nolan. We could do so much for the greater good." Amanda looked at him, hopeful. "So...do we have a deal?"

Nolan shook his head, caught off guard by this request. "Well…okay. It's good to have you back, Ams." He leaned in to hug her but then Amanda stopped him, pushing him back gently.

"There's one more thing," She said. "You have to promise me you won't tell Jack."

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 8:45 a.m.**

 _Even the best of us keep secrets._

"Charlotte?!"

The younger Clarke looked up, meeting the eyes of her older sister. Charlotte let out a sigh of relief – they were okay, Amanda, Jack, Nolan, Louise. She could see all of them now. Amanda barreled towards her, pulling her in for a tight hug. "Why didn't you answer your phone?" She said, but Charlotte could tell she was too relieved to really be angry.

"We need to talk," Charlotte said, addressing the whole group now. Drew placed a hand on her shoulder, for moral support.

 _In all of my years on this earth, I have never met a single person who is always honest._

"Does it involve why you're dressed like that?" Nolan asked, eyeing up her unusual attire of Drew's clothes. "Did you leave - or rob a college student?"

Ignoring him, Charlotte glanced at Drew, who nodded in encouragement. "I think," She said. "That someone we know is behind this. Someone who could easily take us or anyone who he wants down."

"What are you talking about?" Jack questioned.

"I saw him…" Charlotte began vaguely. "I saw him before the blast…"

 _Before you welcome someone into your life, you must think about how much you really know them._

Nolan looked up, his eyes wide as he began to put pieces together in his mind. Did she mean...? Oh no. "I think," He whispered. "The Liberators have found their female David Clarke."

* * *

Meanwhile, somewhere outside of Manhattan, a bound and gagged Olivia Anderson fought against her restraints. When she'd woken up in the back of a dark van, speeding off to an unknown destination, she had no idea what had happened. The last thing she had remembered was a blast and then, being here.

 _A relationship with a person who keeps secrets from you is like being trapped in the darkness._

Finally – after what felt like an eternity – they stopped. Olivia braced herself as the van doors burst open. For all she knew, this is was it – they could kill her, right now. The person before her was dressed in all black – clearly a man based on his size and build, a dark hood shielding his face so she could not see his features. He yanked her up, eliciting a cry from Olivia. "Let's go," He growled in a menacing tone, shoving her onto her feet and pushing her in front of him. Olivia momentarily stopped breathing when she felt a gun pressed against the small of her back. "Move!"

 _That's why before you get attached to someone, you must consider what you know about them as a person, and decide whether or not they are worthy of your trust._

Obeying his commands, Olivia began to move forward as best as she could with her bound ankles, her kidnapper's grip on her strong. They were in the middle of nowhere, with only one thing in front of them – a warehouse. Once they reached it her abductor threw the door open and shoved her inside.

 _Otherwise you may end up befriending, employing…_

Her wrists and feet still tied and a piece of cloth still shoved in her mouth, Olivia hit the ground hard and pain vibrated throughout her body. She weakly rolled over onto her back and that's when she saw her captor's face for the first time. She screamed, but her gag prevented her from making any real noise. It wasn't like anyone was around to hear her anyway. She was trapped.

… _or even welcoming into your bed a complete stranger._

Brett Chamberlain lowered his hood, scanning Olivia up and down as she lay there helpless on the floor. "I'm sorry it had to be this way, Anderson." He said, before shutting the warehouse doors behind him and once again shrouding her in unforgiving darkness...


	4. Tough Love

**A/N** : Once again I don't really have a lot to say about this chapter, but thanks again for all your reviews and keep 'em coming. I'd especially like to know what you guys think about the original characters - ideally I'd have a lot more time to develop them, but this isn't a 22 episode television season, it's a 10 chapter fanfiction. Anyways, enjoy this chapter and review if you'd like.

 **Disclaimer** : Don't own _Revenge_.

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 8:48 a.m.**

 **The outskirts of Manhattan, New York**

 _They say that there is a thin line between love and hate._

It took a few moments for Olivia's breathing to steady and for her eyes to adjust to the darkness of the abandoned warehouse. She glanced frantically around the room, trying to find something – anything – that could possibly help her. Her eyes widened as she spotted her salvation – a rusty nail, sticking up from the floor.

 _Both of them are intense, all-consuming emotions._

Olivia winced as she scooted over towards it – Chamberlain's man-handling had left her covered in fresh bruises. Once she reached the nail she turned her back towards it, fumbling as she tried to cut her wrists free. After a few moments she heard the rope snap and then she could move her hands again, allowing her to untie the rope around her feet and the cloth around her mouth.

 _You cannot choose who you fall in love with. And you cannot choose who you hate._

Once she was free, Olivia got to her feet. She tried to open the warehouse doors, but they wouldn't budge – they must've been locked or blockaded. She needed a new plan, and a thought occurred to her. She dug into her pocket and found it – her phone. Chamberlain had taken her purse from her after he'd abducted her, but the pocket in her skirt was discreet and easy to miss. Apparently he hadn't thought to give her a pat down.

But there was another problem – no signal. She scanned the room and spotted a stack of crates in the corner – leading up to a window. Olivia climbed up, trying to prevent herself from falling off the unsteady pile of crates, until she finally reached the window. Looking at her phone, she saw that she'd finally gotten a signal – shaky, but there. "Thank you God," She said, dialing the first person she could think of and raising her phone to her ear. If there was anyone who could help her, it was him.

 _Love and hate are the two most controlling emotions that a person can feel._

He answered on the very first ring. "Olivia?" Nolan gasped. "Where are you? I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Nolan," Olivia said frantically. She pushed on the window, but it didn't budge. "I-I don't know where I am."

"Stay on the phone with me, alright? I'll track your signal."

"I'm in a warehouse somewhere," She told him, pushing on the window with her shoulder. Still no luck. "I – I can't get out."

"I'll come get you, alright?" Nolan insisted. She could practically hear him scrambling to get his things. "I'm not going to lose you again, Olivia."

 _They demand to be felt. And they take every fiber of your very being._

"Nolan," Olivia said. "There's…there's something really important I need to tell you." She paused from her escape attempt, and took a deep breath. No matter what happened, she needed him to know this. "I –"

"Olivia?" He said suddenly. "Liv, you're breaking up –"

"Nolan, I –" But then, all she heard was static. She'd lost her signal. "Dammit!"

 _Another thing about love and hate is this – they can ruin your life…_

Olivia looked out the window. She could see the sun, the outside world, her freedom just out of reach. "…I love you."

Meanwhile back in Times Square, Nolan slammed his phone down as the call was dropped. He put his head in his hands, convinced that he had failed. But then, a moment later, he heard his computer ping.

He had her location.

A smile making its way onto his face for the first time in hours, he slammed his laptop lid shut. "I'm coming for you, Liv."

… _or they can give you something to fight for._

* * *

 **July 4, 2016 6:50 a.m.**

 **Southampton, New York**

"So," Amanda said, barging into Nolan's house as soon as he opened the door. "I have approximately one hour until Jack gets back from restocking the bar for tonight. I was thinking if we work fast we can discuss our strategy for the Dominguez case and hopefully get the paperwork for Mr. Steele's lawsuit ready to go to the lawyer by tomorrow." By this point she'd already made herself comfortable in the living room while Nolan was still standing in the doorway, half-asleep and getting his bearings.

"Always a pleasure, Ams." He said sarcastically, going to join her on the couch. "But couldn't this have waited until after the sun rose?"

"The sun is up, and I brought you breakfast," Amanda said, holding up a brown paper bag. "Coffee and bagels."

After a moment's hesitation, Nolan accepted her bribe – taking the bag and eagerly digging in. "While I do appreciate your sneaky yet also delicious form of enticement," He said as he chewed. "Let's discuss the elephant in the room."

Amanda shrugged. "I've already given Jack every excuse in the book."

"Which you wouldn't have to do if you just told him what you were really doing," Nolan said. "I told you I would keep your secret because you promised to tell Jack once you gradually got him to warm up to the idea. It's been three weeks, and you're still keeping him in the dark."

Amanda frowned at him. "Jack wouldn't understand,"

"Really?" Nolan said. "Jack loves you, if you told him that all you wanted to do was help people I can't imagine he'd have a problem with that."

"Revenge almost cost both of us our lives, Nolan." Amanda said snappily. "I know that this isn't going to be like before, but it's still too close for comfort to him. He made me swear that I wouldn't work with you, and I broke my promise. There's no way he'll accept that."

Nolan put down his bagel and looked his best friend in the eye. "Amanda – I love you, but I also love Jack. If working with me makes you happy or makes you feel like you have a greater purpose, I will support it – wholeheartedly. But what I will not support is you deceiving Jack. So go home, and tell your husband the truth. He will understand."

Amanda looked down unhappily. "Fine," She said. "But no more bagels for you." Nolan opened his mouth to object but Amanda snatched the bag from his hand before getting up and heading back towards the door. "I'll see you at Louise's Fourth of July party tonight." She said, before walking out.

Nolan sighed and sat back, his arms crossed over his chest. "She's the liar and I'm the one who has to go hungry?"

* * *

"Hey," Olivia said when she saw Hailey walk into the kitchen. "You're up early. I'm making French toast, you want some?"

"No thanks," Hailey said, grabbing a banana off the counter. "I'm not that hungry."

Olivia looked up from the stove, eyeing her daughter curiously. "Dressed already? Is everything alright?"

"I'm fine," Hailey insisted. "Just heading to Nolan's. Work thing."

"On the Fourth of July?"

"Uh…yeah," Hailey said, brushing past her mother on her way towards the door. "It's urgent."

Olivia grabbed her daughter's arm, causing Hailey to spin around to face her. "What's up with you?" She demanded. "You've been acting weird around me for weeks. I know when something is bothering you."

Hailey looked her dead in the eye, jaw clenched. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Hailey," Her mother said softly. "Whatever's on your mind, you can tell me. We don't keep secrets honey, remember?"

The younger girl yanked her arm away and stepped back. "Maybe you should've thought about that before. But I guess you were too busy screwing your married boss behind my back." Olivia froze, while Hailey stormed out of the house. Olivia tried to call after her, but she couldn't find the words.

She knew she'd really messed up this time.

* * *

"Hello?" Hailey called out as she stepped into Nolan's foyer. Walking inside she found her boss in the kitchen, wearing an apron and standing over the oven.

"Hey," Nolan said, turning to face her. "How'd you get in here?"

"Door was unlocked," Hailey explained. She paused, sniffing the air. "Is that…orange and cranberry?"

"Very impressive," Nolan commended her, before pulling a tray of muffins out of the oven. "Someone stole my breakfast, so I had to improvise."

"Well my morning's been pretty crappy too. I kind of blew up at my mom." Hailey dropped her bag and slid into one of the bar stools by the counter, while Nolan placed a plate of the freshly made treats in front of her. She took a bite and nearly moaned in pleasure. "Oh my God, that is so good."

Nolan opened his mouth to ask her what was up, when suddenly his phone rang. He went over and picked it up, spotting a New York area code in the caller ID. "This is Nolan Ross."

On the other end of the line, he heard a loud sigh of relief. "Nolan," Olivia's voice said. "Thank God. Is Hailey with you?"

Nolan looked over, watching the young girl who now had a crumb on her lower lip. She shook her head and mouthed at him: "Don't tell her I'm here!"

The older man sighed and lifted the phone back up to his ear. "She's here." He heard Hailey's loud exhalation at his betrayal.

"Is she alright?" Olivia asked. She sounded frantic. "Can I talk to her?"

"Look Liv," Nolan began. "The two of us are just having breakfast. I think she needs a little time to cool off…"

"Is she angry with me?" Olivia asked. "Oh my God, I bet she's so angry with me…"

"Liv," He repeated, more firmly this time, cutting the hysterical mother off mid-rant. "She's fine, and she's not angry. Just…give her some time. I promise nothing's going to happen to Hailey."

After a brief silence, he heard Olivia let out a breath. "You're right, you're right." She conceded. "Just…tell her I love her, okay?"

Nolan nodded. "Will do."

"Thank you so much, Nolan. You…" She trailed off, as if she wasn't sure if she should finish her sentence. "You always knew how to calm me down."

He smiled sadly. "I'll call you later, okay? Just take some deep breaths. Everything will be alright."

"Thank you," Olivia said. "That's exactly what I needed to hear."

Once they'd said goodbye, Nolan hung up the phone and sat down across from Hailey at the counter. "That was your mom," He said. "She just wanted to make sure you're alright. And she says she loves you." Hailey looked away, unable to meet his eyes, and continued to stuff her face. "What happened between you and Olivia?" Nolan asked. "That is, if you don't mind talking about it…"

Hailey chewed thoughtfully, mulling it over. "Don't tell anyone I told you this, got it? _Especially_ not my mom." Her boss nodded in agreement. "Three weeks ago, I…I found out she's having an affair with her boss. And I kind of confronted her about it this morning."

Nolan nearly choked on his muffin. "Brett Chamberlain? Isn't he…?"

"Married?" Hailey said. "Yes. Also he's ten years older than my mother, and he had a few sexual harassment suits against him back at his old company, which his lawyers did a good job of burying. Trust me, I did extensive research on him after I caught him defiling my mom..."

"If his lawyers buried the suits, how did you find them?" Nolan asked curiously.

"Please," She said, her mouth full. "Do you honestly think I haven't learned anything from watching you?"

Nolan smiled slightly, but then put down his food. "Hailey, Olivia loves you and would never try to hurt you. I know it doesn't look good right now, but she is still your mother. Did you even listen to her side of the story?" Hailey looked down in shame in response. "Take a little while to cool off, then talk to her at Louise's tonight. Okay?"

Hailey nodded and rose, grabbing her bag. "Thanks, Nolan. You're right." She turned to head out but then paused, looking back. "Do you mind if I take some more of those muffins?" Nolan nodded, laughing when he saw her dump half of the tray into her bag. "What?" She said, turning on her heel to head out. "You're almost as good a chef as you are a revenger."

* * *

"Hi, Stacey." Charlotte said warmly as she walked into the office of Ross & Associates. "How are you?"

The receptionist looked up, surprised to see her there. "Miss Clarke, don't you have the day off today?"

"I do," Charlotte said, approaching the front desk. "But Stacey, I came here to see you." The woman raised an eyebrow at her, clearly intrigued. "I need you to do me a big favor and get me all the information you have on Drew Burton."

"I'm sorry," Stacey said. "But I can't do that. All of Mr. Burton's personal information is confidential."

"I thought you might need a little incentive," Charlotte said, before digging into her big Michael Kors bag. She pulled out two tickets, waving them in front of Stacey's face. "If you do find it in your heart to help me out, then you and your plus one of choice will score an invitation to the hottest party of the season – Louise Ellis's Fourth of July bash. It's going to be fabulous." Stacey reached for them, but Charlotte yanked them back. "Now Stacey, if you don't help me out, I don't help you out."

After a moment, Stacey snatched the tickets from Charlotte's hand and then opened the filing cabinet. She rummaged through before finally extending a manila folder to her marked 'Burton'. "There's his complete application and career information, plus a background check. We don't show Mr. Ross resumes unless we've made sure they're viable candidates first. But I think there will be a few things in there that peak your interest. Don't tell anyone I gave you this, alright?"

Charlotte smiled and shoved the file in her purse. "Thank you, Stacey. It's been a pleasure doing business with you."

* * *

The Fourth of July was one of the busiest days of the year at the Hamptons Beach Club – actually _the_ busiest, only Memorial Day and Labor Day even coming close. It was mid-afternoon and the bar was jam-packed. Thankfully, Jack had ensured that everything would run as smoothly as possible today – he and Amanda would be there to oversee for the rest of the afternoon, then leave their manager in charge so they could make an appearance at Louise's party that evening. As he looked around the room, seeing nothing but content faces, he smiled to himself knowing that they were doing a good job so far running one of their best friend's businesses.

"Hey Jack," Amanda said, walking in from the back room with Carl on her hip. "I'm gonna take Bay for a walk before I drop Carl off at the sitter's, alright?" She kneeled down and scratched Bay behind the ears – he'd been lying contently in his doggie bed, relishing the affection of patrons – before clipping him to his leash.

"Alright," Jack agreed. "If I don't see you before then, I'll meet you at Louise's?"

"Of course," Amanda replied. She stood up again, and looked to Carl. "Say bye-bye to your dad."

"Bye Daddy," Carl said happily, while Jack ruffled his son's hair affectionately.

"Be good tonight, okay bud?" He told him, kissing his forehead. "I love you."

Amanda grabbed Bay, trying to get a good grip on his leash, but the dog began to run in circles, twisting his leash around her legs. "Bay!" She chastised, trying to untangle herself but spilling the contents of her purse in the process.

Jack picked it up for her, while Amanda managed to free her legs and get Bay straightened out. The dog stuck out his tongue and wagged his tail, clearly enjoying this game. "Not easy being Superwoman," Jack told Amanda, who took her bag back and smiled wearily.

She gave him a quick peck on the lips before heading out, dog and boy in tow. "Love you!" She called over her shoulder.

Jack smiled. "Love you too."

After she left he turned to go back to work when he saw something peeking out from under one of the barstools – some papers. Realizing they must've fallen out of Amanda's purse when she dropped it, he picked them up and went to stash them behind the cash register for safekeeping. But when Jack caught a glimpse of the Ross & Associates letterhead and the title – DOMINGUEZ CASE: URGENT – curiosity got the best of him. Why would his wife have this?

The top page detailed the case of some poor SOB who was being accused of book cooking by a disgruntled ex-employee. It was only when he reached the bottom that things really got interesting – Associate: Amanda Porter. Flipping through the pages, he found similar case descriptions on all of the others – and the name of his wife as the on-case associate on each one. These were all cases of Nolan's that he and Amanda had worked on together – without Jack's knowledge.

Pulling out his phone, he dialed the number of Nolan's office. "Hello," The receptionist said perkily. "Ross & Associates, how may I help you?"

"Yes, hello." Jack said, trying to sound casual. "I'm umm…I'm a client of Amanda Porter's, and I need to speak to her urgently. I was wondering if she could meet me this afternoon?"

"Well Mrs. Porter wasn't supposed to be in today, but she just called actually saying she would be stopping by. I could ask her if she's available to meet you when she arrives. What did you say your name was again?"

"…Never mind." Jack said. "Thank you." Before the receptionist could ask any more questions, he hung up.

It seemed he and Amanda had a lot to discuss.

* * *

Louise was caught off guard when her doorbell unexpectedly rang – three hours before her party was scheduled to begin. "Excuse me for a moment, sugar." She said to the florist, whom she had been lecturing about the importance of symmetry as he found spots around the manor for the red, white and blue flower arrangements she'd ordered.

"Nolan," She said, spotting her favorite tech genius on her doorstep when she opened the door. "What a pleasant surprise. Come in, why don't you?"

"I need to talk to you about something," He said, following her inside. Ellis Manor was in the midst of being prepared for tonight's festivities – no expense had been spared. "I've been trying to play it cool, but…but I can't help but be bothered by it."

"Is it the flower arrangements?" Louise gasped, looking over her shoulder. "Oh, I _knew_ I should've gotten the lilies. I just thought that daisies were more all-American –"

"The flowers look amazing," Nolan insisted, causing Louise to breathe a sigh of relief. "I need to talk about…about Olivia."

"What about her?"

Nolan sighed and sat down, while Louise took the seat across from him and touched his arm comfortingly. "I found out that she's been in a relationship with Brett Chamberlain."

"The Wall Street fella?" Louise asked. "But, I thought he was still married to that little high society wife of his."

"He is – that's part of the problem."

"And what's the other part? That you're still in love with her?"

"When Hailey told me," Nolan admitted hesitantly. "I did feel…a little jealous. I know I haven't been with Olivia in a long time but…"

"You never got over her," Louise interrupted. She shook her head. "Oh Nolan, sweetie. I am so sorry."

"Please don't tell anyone I told you," He instructed. "Hailey swore me to secrecy,"

"Cross my heart, hope to die, stick a needle in my eye," She promised emphatically. "Your secret is safe with me."

"Thanks, Lulu." Nolan said, rising from his seat and heading for the door. "I have to meet a client, but I'll see you later?" Louise nodded in confirmation. Once he was gone she leaned forward in her chair, the wheels in her mind already turning.

She had an idea.

* * *

As she exited her walk-in closet, Charlotte paused when she caught a glimpse of Drew's file, still perched where she'd left it on her vanity. She walked over and picked it up, sinking down into the nearest chair. She just couldn't wait to read it one moment longer. Pushing her makeup aside she spread outs its contents, wondering which she should read first. There had to be something Drew was hiding, right? A criminal record, a harassment lawsuit, a secret love child – everyone had a skeleton in their closet.

She started off with his basic information. _Name: Andrew Elliott Burton. Date of birth: July 22, 1990_ – funny, she never would've pegged him for a water sign. As she read his educational information, Charlotte noticed something odd – Drew had attended schools in Camden, New Jersey for the first ten years of his life, but then after that he'd moved around a lot, never staying in one place for more than three years. After Camden he'd gone to Hoboken, Newark, North Philly, among others. Finally, at the age of seventeen, he'd transferred to some private school on the Main Line – on scholarship. After that came Columbia University via some hefty financial aid, where he'd graduated from law school only a few months previously. Top of his class, too.

Next, Charlotte perused his background check. _Mother: Jeannie Burton; 1972-2000. Cause of death: Drug overdose. Father: Unknown._ Charlotte felt her stomach drop. She tried to shove everything back into the folder, suddenly full of regret, when a newspaper clipping fell out and landed directly in her lap.

 _A foster home in Hudson County was raided by police, who suspected the foster parents of drug dealing, specifically the sale of crack cocaine. Police found inside the home the owners' thirteen year old foster son Andrew Burton, along with his six year old half-sister Violet Burton. The injuries found on the two children – who were placed in the home three years ago following the death of their biological mother – indicate years of prolonged physical abuse._

Charlotte threw the file and all its contents across the floor, suddenly feeling sick to her stomach. She placed her head in her hands and tried to breathe. She'd hoped the file would reveal some twisted secret of Drew's which she could expose to exact some petty form of vengeance – but all it had shown her was that the man who she had taught herself to loathe had led a pretty miserable life, and miraculously overcame the odds.

But perhaps the worst part though was the realization that by reading this file looking for secrets, she'd done exactly what her mother would have.

* * *

Olivia scanned the party as she stepped out onto Louise's back porch. The festivities were in full swing as the sun began to set, streaking bright oranges and pinks across the horizon. Finally, her eyes landed on a familiar face, standing by the bar with Spencer.

"Hailey," She said and her daughter looked up, her face falling when she saw her.

"…Hey," Hailey began hesitantly, placing her cup of punch down. She turned to Spencer. "Can you excuse us for a second?"

"Sure. Take all the time you need," He said with a nod, before leaving the two of them alone.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you earlier," Hailey said to her mother. "I'm just…I'm a little shocked that you'd start a relationship with a guy who is married. And maybe a little disappointed, too."

"It wasn't a relationship, not really." Olivia explained. "Not that that makes it any better. It was wrong of me, and I know that. We'd…we'd hooked up once before, after a long night at the office. I told myself it would never happen again but then three weeks ago when we were working late I was…I was lonely, and you were gone for the night, and when he asked to come back to the house I said yes. It was an impulsive, stupid decision and I wasn't thinking straight." She tried to push the image away from her mind – Chamberlain's hands on her waist, his breath on her neck, how she'd come undone when she'd looked into his eyes and imagined they were Nolan's looking back at her…No one had looked at her like that – like they wanted her – in such a long time…

Hailey nodded. "I forgive you. Nobody's perfect, we all make mistakes. Just do me a favor, okay? Tell him it's over."

"Of course," Olivia said definitely. "The next time I see him, I'll end things."

Suddenly, Hailey's eyebrow shot up when she saw something peculiar over Olivia's shoulder. "Mom?"

"Yeah?"

"I think that'll be sooner than you think."

Olivia turned around and her stomach dropped when she saw Brett Chamberlain himself standing in the back doorway. Their eyes locked and he smiled. She couldn't avoid him now.

But what was he doing here anyway?

* * *

"Hey –" Chamberlain started to say, but Olivia cut him off firmly – this conversation didn't require pleasantries.

"I need to talk to you,"

Chamberlain looked at her expectantly. "Well, that sounds awfully serious. By the way, I was wondering if after the party maybe you wanted to go back to my place? Sonya is at this charity thing all night and –"

"Brett," Olivia said, cutting him off mid-sentence. "That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about." She took a deep breath, then spewed it all out at once. "This thing between us has to end."

Chamberlain gave her a puzzled look. "Anderson, it's just sex. It doesn't have to mean anything more or less than you want it to. And I think we have a good thing going, you and I –"

"We work well together," Olivia said. "But…but I can't be in an intimate relationship with a man who's married, okay? I don't want to sneak around behind your wife's back, planning rendezvouses for when she's not around or when Hailey's at a friend's. It feels…dirty. And wrong."

Chamberlain's gaze hardened. "…There's someone else, isn't there?"

"What?" Olivia gasped. "No!" _Yes. No._ She thought. _I don't know._ "I'm sorry Brett, but this just isn't right. How can I teach my daughter to be an honest person when I'm hiding such a big secret? It has to end. I hope we can still keep our professional relationship intact." She extended her hand to him, wanting to part on good terms, but Chamberlain only stared at it, the anger in his eyes evident.

"You've just made a huge mistake," He said, before storming out.

* * *

As Nolan descended the main stairs, he spotted a familiar Wall Street boss making his premature exit. Rejoining the party, he found Louise at the bottom of the steps, telling a caterer that they needed more champagne. He grabbed her arm, turning her attention towards him. "Did I just see one Brett Chamberlain walking out of here?"

"Why, I don't know what you're talking about," Louise said, playing dumb. As they walked through the party she smiled and waved at people in the crowd, ever the perfect hostess.

"I think you do,"

His friend frowned. "Okay, so I _may_ have sent him a last minute invite..."

"Louise!"

"I just want to keep an eye on him," She explained. "This man is clearly hiding some major secrets."

"You wouldn't be doing this if I hadn't told you about him and Olivia," Nolan said.

"Well, I'm overprotective. You clearly still love this woman and I want to make sure neither of you gets hurt."

"Louise, please just stay out of it." Nolan told her. "Olivia's made her choice. Now we have to accept it."

Louise watched him walk away, mulling over her options for a moment. Once Nolan was gone, she flagged down a member of her staff. "Bernard, did you see the man who just left?"

He nodded. "Yes ma'am."

With a sly smile, Louise pulled the keys to her car out of her pocket. "There's a bonus with your name on it if you follow him."

* * *

As Charlotte navigated her way through the party, she spotted Drew around the fire pit. He was happily talking to some people, a drink in his hand. "Hey," She said, approaching him. "Can I talk to you…alone?"

"Sure," Drew said. "I um…I actually have something I've been meaning to say to you too."

The two of them walked over towards the pool, where only a few people were. They sat down on some deck chairs, Drew across from her. Charlotte looked at the cocktail he was holding. "Is that a Sex on the Beach?"

"A Screwdriver," Drew said. "Because it's a tool, just like me." Charlotte laughed in response. "I've been meaning to apologize for what I said on Amanda and Jack's anniversary. I was really, _really_ drunk, and I'm even more of an ass when I'm drunk than I am when I'm sober."

"It's okay," Charlotte insisted. "I threw a drink in your face, so we're even."

"And stained my nicest shirt, too." Drew said with a smirk. He paused, a thoughtful look on his face. "I should've just told you that you looked beautiful. Like you do tonight." Charlotte felt her face flush and she looked down, not wanting him to see her smile. "So, what is it that you wanted to say to me?"

She looked up, trying to think of something to say. "Well, uh…just the same thing. That I forgive you for what you said. And that I'll pay for your dry-cleaning."

Drew laughed. "You don't have to do that. The least I can do is pay for my own dry-cleaning."

Charlotte was smiling when she saw Jack walking over in their direction. "Hey," She said. "I was wondering when you were going to show up."

"The club was just really busy," Jack explained. "Have you seen Amanda?"

"I think she went down to the dock," Charlotte told him and Jack nodded, starting to walk away. "Where are you going?" She called after him. "The fireworks are about to start."

"I really need to talk to her," Jack told her, before disappearing down the beach.

Charlotte turned back to Drew and he shrugged at her. "I wonder what that was about..."

* * *

"I need to talk to you."

Amanda turned around, smiling when she saw Jack walking down the dock towards her. "Do you remember five years ago," She said. "When we were standing in this exact spot? That was when you told me how you felt about me. You know every time I replay that moment in my mind, I imagine myself telling you the truth."

Jack looked down, clenching his jaw. "So why are you still lying to me now, then?"

Amanda's face fell at his words. "What are you talking about?"

"I know," He said, meeting her eyes. "About you working with Nolan."

He saw the look of horror cross her face – the one you got when you realized you'd just been caught in a lie. "Jack –" She began, trying desperately to explain herself. "I'm sorry –"

"I told you I didn't want you getting involved in revenge again. You made a promise to me and you betrayed my trust. God Amanda, I'm your husband-"

"You're right," Amanda said, her shame turning into annoyance. "You're my husband, not my boss. I'm a big girl Jack, I can decide what's best for myself."

"But this isn't just about you anymore! When we got married we became equal partners. Everything you do affects me and this family!" He paused and took a breath, lowering his volume. "Look, I'm not trying to control you – I know you're strong and independent, and I love that about you. But I also know how you get with things like this, and I don't want anyone to get hurt."

"I'm not going to hurt anyone, Jack."

He sighed. "Maybe not on purpose."

Amanda looked up at him, a thought occurring to her when he said this, her mouth slightly open from shock. "…Oh my God."

"What?" Jack said, confused.

" _Don't_ bring that up," Amanda said angrily. She turned and started to walk away from him, overtaken by fury.

"Bring what up?" Jack called after her. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

Amanda spun back around and Jack saw that angry tears had begun to fall down her face. "Emily. Aiden. Declan. Daniel. Ben. All the people who have been caught in my crossfire! All the people who lost their lives because of me!"

"Amanda," Jack said, his tone softening. "That is _not_ what I meant..."

"Isn't it, though?" She shook her head, furiously wiping tears from her cheeks. "You're right, Jack. I'm dangerous. Maybe you should keep your distance."

"Amanda!" He yelled after her, but it did no good. She stormed off, not looking back.

Jack turned back towards the sea, cursing under his breath. When he looked up, the first firework shot across the sky, an exploding cascade of colors. And just like five years earlier, he watched the fireworks alone.

* * *

 _Loving someone is a beautiful thing. But it can also be extraordinarily painful._

When Nolan opened the door to his house, he wasn't surprised to see Amanda once again standing there. "Well, your track record of showing up at ungodly hours continues. What is it this time?" That's when he noticed that she'd been crying. "Is everything okay?"

"Can I stay here for a while?" She stepped aside, revealing that she'd brought a suitcase with her. "Jack and I had a really big fight. I…I don't know if he'll ever forgive me for this."

Nolan frowned and stepped aside. "Come on in."

 _When you love someone, you open yourself up to the pain that comes with disappointing them._

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 8:57 a.m.**

Hailey looked up from rubbing her now popped-back-into-place shoulder when the curtain was suddenly thrust opened, thinking the doctor had finally returned with her discharge papers. Due to the mass influx of those injured in the bombing, the ER was running slowly. Only it wasn't her doctor.

 _It hurts to know that the person you love doesn't love you back, or that you've let them down. Or that you might lose them forever._

"Spencer? What are you doing here? I thought you took a sick day."

Spencer stepped inside and immediately began to pick up Hailey's stuff. "I did," He said, his voice sounding like he had recently awoken from sleep. "But Nolan called me. He sent me to get you."

Hailey grabbed his arm, forcing him to stop for a moment and look at her. "Why?"

 _But a life full of love is a much better an alternative than a life without._

Spencer took a deep breath. "Hailey, he found your mom."

 _Because even though it's tough, loving another person with all of your heart is the best thing you can do._


	5. Warning Sign

**A/N** : This chapter is basically your equivalent of a mid-season finale - after this chapter, I'll be going on a two week hiatus. Chapter 6 will be up on May 15. The two timelines will converge in this chapter, so from Chapter 6 on there will be no more flashbacks. I kind of messed up my timeline a little bit so I ended up having to do a three week time jump I wasn't intending to have - whoops. But whatever - this chapter picks up three weeks after the Fourth of July.

Also, I wanted to know if you guys wanted me to write a sequel to this? I planned this as part of a series, so whether or not this has a sequel will affect how I end this story. Let me know if you'd read a sequel if I wrote one! Personally I think it would be much more satisfying and a lot less rushed if I wrote a second installment, but you know, I'm not going to write a sequel if no one is interested.

 **Disclaimer** : I'm only a fan of _Revenge_.

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 9:33 a.m.**

 **Manhattan, New York**

 _After a disaster, it is natural to wonder: why didn't I see this coming?_

The five of them sat together on the sidewalk, shoulder to shoulder, no one speaking, everyone staring blankly ahead. While around them the crowd was continually thinning as more and more people were allowed to leave, they had yet to be cleared and even if they had been, they didn't know if they had the strength to get up.

"What…" Louise began tentatively. "What do we do now?"

Charlotte shrugged, her eyes still trained firmly on the ground. "I don't know."

 _Was there something I could have done?_

Just then a man approached them, his jacket proudly boasting 'FBI'. "Amanda and Jack Porter, Charlotte Clarke, Louise Ellis, and Andrew Burton?"

"Yes," Jack confirmed. "Are we free to go now?"

"Not yet," The agent said. "Would all of you mind coming down to the FBI headquarters for some questions?"

"What if we do mind?" Charlotte demanded.

The agent frowned at her. "With all due respect, miss, it really wasn't optional." He motioned for them all to stand up, which they all did hesitantly.

"Are we being charged with something?" Drew asked.

"Should you be?"

"We have nothing to hide," Amanda insisted. "But if this an interrogation, we want a lawyer present."

"That's your legal right," The agent agreed. "Only we're questioning you as witnesses, not suspects. But while we're on the subject, we'd appreciate it if you could get us in contact with some other colleagues of yours – Hailey Anderson, Spencer Presley and Nolan Ross?"

 _Is there something I can do to make this go away?_

"What exactly is all of this about?" Jack asked. "We really don't know what any of this has to do with us."

"We believe that you may know the person who was responsible for today's…" The agent trailed off, grappling for the right word. " _Event_."

Abruptly, Louise stepped forward. "Agent, I think there's something you should know. About Chamberlain Financial."

 _Was there a warning sign I missed?_

The agent looked at her, his expression neutral. "That's actually what I wanted to talk to you all about. How much do you know about Olivia Anderson?"

* * *

 **July 29, 2016 7:00 a.m.**

 **Southampton, New York**

"Wake up."

Amanda jolted awake with a start, finding a very annoyed Nolan Ross standing above her. "Have you talked to Jack today?" He asked.

"No," Amanda said groggily, rising into a sitting position. "I've been sleeping. Can't this wait until later?"

"Well when was the last time you talked to him?" Nolan persisted, sitting down at the edge of the guest room bed, where his best friend had spent her nights for the past several weeks. Amanda rolled her eyes and scooted over.

"He called me last night," She replied. "He asked me if I was ready to talk and I said I needed more time. He said okay, and that was that."

Nolan sighed and rubbed his temples. "Look, you know I'll let you stay here for as long as you need. But what I won't allow is you to ruin your marriage over some stupid fight."

"I'm not ruining my marriage," Amanda insisted. "We're just…on a break."

Nolan moved closer towards her and touched her knee. "Ams, I know you better than I know myself. This is a classic Amanda Porter née Clarke self-preservation tactic."

"Look, Nolan, I don't need a lecture from you." Amanda said. "It's just a rough patch."

"What it is, is you being afraid." Nolan insisted. "You think that you're unlovable Amanda, but you're not. You're worried that someday Jack is going to up and leave you, so you push him away – but that is not the kind of guy Jack is."

"He blames me for what happened to Emily," Amanda blurted out. "And to Declan. And I – I can't blame him. It was all my fault. If I had never tried to get revenge in the first place –"

"Ams, stop it." Nolan cut her off. "What happened to Emily, and Declan, and Aiden, and Daniel, and Ben, none of it was your fault. You didn't want anything bad to happen to them. Jack doesn't blame you – but I think you blame yourself. And because of that you don't understand why anyone could love you. But you're wrong – Jack loves you, and so do I. Because you are a kind, passionate, strong person – and definitely not a murderer."

Amanda looked down and was silent for a long moment. "I was thinking of stopping by the babysitter's house today," She said. "You know, to see Carl. It's been a little while."

"Do you want me to come with you?"

She nodded. "I'd like that."

"Okay."

"Okay."

* * *

"Bernard! What do you have for me today?"

Louise sat up in the deck chair where she'd been lounging by the pool, pushing her sunglasses onto the top of her head as she saw her staffer approach.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Ellis," He said. "But I've been keeping an eye on Mr. Chamberlain for three weeks, and I haven't seen him do anything suspicious. He just goes to work, maybe out for lunch or a drink, and then home to his wife."

"Nothing?" Louise sighed and Bernard nodded in response. "Alright, Bernard. Thank you, your bonus check is waiting for you on the table in the foyer. And bring me another water bottle while you're up, why don't you?"

Bernard smiled at her and walked towards the house. "Right away, Ms. Ellis."

Louise sat back, crossing her arms over her chest. She knew she should probably let it go but – she just had a really bad feeling about this guy. And she trusted her intuition.

She smiled and pushed her sunglasses back down. She had a new plan. But she'd need help to accomplish it.

* * *

Charlotte strode into the beach club in mid-afternoon, finding only a few patrons inside and the place relatively quiet. "Hey Miguel," She called out to the bartender. "Is Amanda here today?"

He shook his head at her. "She really hasn't been around much," He said while Charlotte slipped into a bar stool. "Can I get you a drink anyway?"

"She'll have a Sex on the Beach," Someone said and Charlotte turned, smiling when she saw Drew a few stools down. "Well," He said, walking over to take the seat next to her. "Do my eyes deceive me, or is Miss Designer Clothes actually wearing jeans?"

"Two hundred dollar Guess ones," Charlotte replied. "But yes, jeans." Drew laughed, while the bartender returned with Charlotte's drink. She reached for her purse, but Drew stopped her.

"That's okay," He said. "It's on me."

Charlotte smiled and glanced down, growing serious as he paid the bartender with a smile. "Look…can I talk to you about something?"

"Okay," Drew said, taking a sip of his beer while the bartender walked away. "Shoot."

"I um," She began nervously. "I'm not proud of this but…I kind of, looked at your file."

She expected Drew to get mad, or upset, but instead he just laughed and lifted his beer to his lips again. "Funny, cause I kind of looked at yours too."

Charlotte raised her eyebrow at him. "I got Stacey into Louise's Fourth of July party."

"I gave her my floor seats to The Knicks! And I _really_ wanted to go to that game too." They both laughed. "Hey," Drew said. "Do you want to maybe…go for a walk?"

Charlotte smiled. "Sure."

* * *

"Mandy!"

Amanda grinned as Carl jumped up as soon as he saw her, running over to hug her. "Hey buddy," She said, crouching down to his level. "God, have you gotten even bigger in the past few days? What is your daddy feeding you?"

Nolan stepped inside behind her, smiling when he saw the stepmother and stepson interacting. They really were cute together. "So," Amanda said once they'd pulled apart from their hug. "Uncle Nolan and I were thinking we'd take you to the beach today."

"And maybe," Nolan interjected. "To the toy store after. You know, if you play your cards right."

Carl's face lit up. "Can we go right now?" Amanda smiled and nodded. "Okay! I'll go tell Gigi!" He raced off to find his babysitter, while Amanda laughed at his adorableness.

"I miss seeing him every day," She said.

Nolan patted her shoulder. "I know you do."

* * *

"What am I doing exactly?"

Spencer looked up as Louise returned, two drinks in hand as she sat down next to him on the couch. He'd been caught off guard when she called him, requesting his technological savvy. She paused. "You're old enough to drink aren't you?" Spencer nodded. "Okay, good. Cause this is a real Long Island style iced tea."

"Again," Spencer said. "What do you need me for?"

Louise bit her lip. "I was wondering if you could…maybe…for me…hack into Brett Chamberlain's computer?"

Spencer gave her a look. "Why do you want me to hack into Wall Street maven Brett Chamberlain's computer?"

"Because, I'm worried about Nolan." Louise explained. "I can't tell you much more because I've been sworn to secrecy, so I need you to just trust that I'm asking you this with Nolan's best interests at heart."

After a moment, Spencer sighed. "I'm gonna need a couple days." Louise squealed excitedly. "And I can't make any promises, okay? I don't know what kind of security this guys has, and I'm just starting out. If you let me go to Nolan with this…"

"No!" Louise insisted. "Do not breathe a word of this to Nolan! He'll just try to stop me, but I know there is _something_ that this fella is hiding."

"Okay, fine." Spencer gave in. "I won't tell Nolan. But you totally owe me, by the way."

Louise smiled and nodded. "Honey, you've just made me happier than a tornado in a trailer park."

Spencer laughed. "I'll call you when I get it." Louise thanked him and he started to head out, taking a deep breath.

The things he did for Nolan Ross.

* * *

"So, have you talked to Jack today?"

On the other end of their phone conversation, Amanda sighed loudly at Nolan's questioning. It was Sunday afternoon, two days since he'd taken her to see Carl on Friday, and she was still crashing at his place even though it had been over three weeks since her and Jack's fight on the Fourth of July. This morning, she'd been gone when he woke up. "We talked yesterday," Amanda answered. "When he said I could keep Carl until this afternoon. He wanted to talk more but I told him I had to go. He keeps calling."

"And why don't you answer?" Nolan asked. He paused from his stroll down Main Street, his work phone buzzing in his pocket simultaneously, and stopped in front of a random bakery window. "Amanda, Jack is your husband. You can't just ignore him out of self-preservation every time you guys have a fight."

Amanda was silent for a moment, and Nolan could hear the sounds of innocent laughter in the background – probably Carl. "Maybe this marriage was a mistake." She said. "Maybe we rushed into things…"

"Amanda Clarke," He cut her off sternly. "Don't you dare say that. We both know you don't mean it."

"I think I know what I want better than you do Nolan," Amanda snapped. She took a deep breath. "I'm sorry I – I love Jack, Nolan. I really, really do. But what if…what if he…"

"Don't even finish that sentence." Nolan told her. "I'm not going to lie and say that everything's always been easy for you and Jack – but the two of you have made each other happier than I've ever seen either of you. Don't throw that all away, Ams. Can't you just see what's right in front of you?"

He could practically sense Amanda's eye roll. "I'll see you tonight."

"Ams –" Then the line went dead. She'd hung up on him. Of course.

Nolan stuffed his phone in his pocket, while his work one was still vibrating away. Annoyed, he turned it off. He wasn't in the mood, right now.

"Nolan?"

He looked up, spotting Olivia walking out of a shop with a canvas bag on her arm. The sun reflecting on her hair and a smile on her face when she saw him, he relaxed a little bit at the sight of her. And he couldn't help but think that the sundress she was wearing made her look very pretty… "Hey," He said, walking towards her to meet her halfway. "We've got to stop running into each other. You following me or something?"

Olivia smiled. "Maybe I am." She said coyly. The two of them continued to walk down the street, side by side. "Just running some errands on a nice day," She responded seriously. "Hailey and I are going to have a movie night tonight, so I figured I'd get her some of the caramel popcorn she likes."

"I'm glad you guys made up," Nolan replied. "Hailey's been a lot happier since you did."

"But from what I heard of your phone conversation – I take it Amanda and Jack haven't?" Nolan nodded in confirmation. "That's terrible. Why?"

"Love sucks." He sighed. "But in all seriousness – she just can't get it through her thick skull that Jack loves her for who she is, flaws and all. Amanda didn't let anyone in for years, and she's not getting over it quickly. She still thinks Jack's too good for her."

"I know the feeling," Olivia said, and Nolan gave her a teasing look.

"Olivia, I never knew you felt that way about Jack…"

She giggled and playfully slugged him. "That's not what I meant, stupid!" The two of them laughed, before Olivia grew serious. "I just…I used to feel the same way about you."

This threw Nolan for a loop. "Is that…is that why you left?"

 _We're not us anymore._

 _I just feel so empty._

 _You were my heart…_

 _I'm so sorry…_

Olivia frowned. "It was complicated but…yeah."

"Olivia, I loved you. I told you every day how much I loved you…"

"We never saw each other anymore, Nolan!" She said. "You were forging this future for yourself, fighting the good fight…Where did that leave me? I felt like a hindrance. Like I was just a silly little girl wasting your time."

Nolan shook his head at her. "Why didn't you tell me? I never knew you felt that way…"

"You were amazing, Nolan." Olivia said. "Whether you saw it or not, you had so much potential. Far more than I ever did. I knew I would just hold you back…I mean, you became a multi-billionaire and I got knocked up and divorced. I think that proves I made the right decision."

"You are so smart, and you are a great mother." He persisted. "That's noble too."

They'd stopped walking by this point, frozen under the shade of a tree. Olivia was silent for a moment. "There's nothing we can do about it now, Nolan. Even your money can't buy a time machine…"

Nolan cracked a wry smile. "But you know that the minute it can, I'll be first in line." Olivia smiled hesitantly at him.

They were cut off by the sound of Olivia's text tone, and she checked her phone. "That's Hailey, wondering where I am." She said. "I have to go."

Nolan nodded. "Look Liv, can we just…can we just part on good terms?"

She smiled. "Yeah, of course." A beat passed awkwardly, neither of them sure what to do. Finally, Nolan stepped forward and – tentatively – they hugged.

Their embrace ended far too quickly when Olivia pulled away. "I'll see you around." She said, before turning around and continuing on her way. Nolan watched her go with a heavy heart.

* * *

"You know, this is the third day in the row we've walked on the beach together."

Charlotte smiled at Drew as they walked along the water's edge. She looked out at the sea, breathing in the salty air. "Why'd you look at my file?" She asked randomly.

Drew shrugged and kicked a shell that was in his path. "I wanted to know more about you. And okay, I kinda wanted to see if my snap judgments about you were right. But now I'm really glad they weren't."

She smiled. "To be completely honest, I was looking for blackmail material." She confessed, making Drew laugh. "But, I'm really glad I was wrong about you too. And I'm um…I'm sorry. For how I acted, and everything you had to go through."

"Maybe it's better this way." Drew suggested. "We've only been on three dates and you already know all my baggage."

Charlotte stopped walking, turning to look at him. "These count as dates?"

Drew smirked. "Yeah. Doesn't have to have caviar and champagne to be a date." Charlotte rolled her eyes. "Why? You got a problem with that?"

Charlotte paused, watching Drew as he looked pensively out at the ocean and then back to her. "Well you know what they say about the third date, don't you?" Slowly they both leaned in, hesitation on both parts, but finally their lips connected. And it was…good. _Really_ good. Better than she thought it would be.

Charlotte broke away after a long moment, pressing her forehead against his. "I want to go to your house."

Drew looked into her eyes, biting down on his lip. "Are you sure you want to?"

She nodded fervently, a smile on her face. "Absolutely."

* * *

Amanda felt her phone vibrate in her pocket – another call from Jack. She'd taken what Nolan had said to heart, yet she still felt too ashamed to face him. This had been the biggest fight they'd had since they got married – maybe the biggest fight they'd had ever. Maybe it was for the best – she loved Jack, she really did, but maybe he deserved someone better than her. Someone who didn't have the scars she did. Someone who could give him more children. Someone without so much baggage. Did she really want him to make these sacrifices for her?

Hitting decline, she placed her phone back in her car, packing up Carl's stuff after their afternoon at the park. "Come on buddy," She said, placing him in his car seat. "It's getting late. Time to go."

Carl looked at her thoughtfully as she buckled him up. "When are you coming home?"

Amanda sighed. "I don't know, buddy. There's some things I have to talk to your dad about."

"Okay," Carl said. "But I miss you Mommy."

Amanda froze, feeling like she'd stopped breathing. Had she heard him right? She must've made a mistake. "…What did you just call me, Carl?"

"Mommy," The little boy repeated innocently, not realizing how momentous what he had just said was.

"Carl, honey," Amanda said, treading carefully. "You remember what Daddy told you right? Mommy's in Heaven." It wasn't that she didn't _want_ Carl to call her Mommy – she just wouldn't forgive herself if he forgot about the mother that had been taken away from him. She couldn't replace Emily.

"She's _Mama_ ," Carl explained, as if it was completely obvious and Amanda was the only one who didn't know this. "You're Mommy. You each get your own name, cause mamas and mommies are the people who love you the bestest. I can have two." Amanda smiled and nodded. Honestly, she felt like she might cry.

She knew then that Nolan had been exactly right. She had a family that loved and cared about her, and didn't care about her past. And she wasn't going to screw herself out of her chance for true happiness. Not this time.

"Come on," She said, ruffling her step – her _son's_ hair. "Let's go home."

* * *

When Jack arrived home that night, he did a double take when he saw his wife waiting for him in the living room. It was the first time he'd seen her in person in weeks, and at first he thought her presence was just wishful thinking on his part. "…Hi," He breathed, once he'd realized that his eyes really weren't deceiving him. "I'm…I'm glad you're here. I've been trying to call you all day…" He walked over to her and that's when he saw it – she'd been crying. "Hey," Jack said, sinking down to the spot next to her and tentatively reaching out to touch her. "Are you okay?"

Amanda looked up and she smiled. "Yeah. Carl, he…he called me Mommy today."

"Really?" Jack asked and she nodded. "Amanda…that's great."

"I'm so sorry," She said. "I just…sometimes I worry that you can't love me after everything I've done. That someday you'll realize that you deserve someone so much better than me. So I panicked and I ran away, and I ignored your calls because I was scared. I don't ever want to lose you, and in the end that's what I did." She looked down but Jack took her face in his hands, forcing her to meet his eyes.

"Hey," He said gently. "You will never lose me, okay? It doesn't matter what you've done in your past. You thought you were doing the right thing, and I know you just want to do the right thing now. What happened to Emily, and Declan, and Aiden, and Daniel, and Ben – none of that was your fault. You didn't want any of that to happen and I _never_ blamed you, not even for a second. I just want you to stay safe, alright? And I want you to be here with me. Because you're my wife, and I love you."

Amanda nodded. "I love you too. Can I stay here tonight?"

He smiled. "Of course. This is your home too." Jack pulled her into his arms and she breathed a sigh of relief, burying her face into the crook of his neck.

Finally, everything was right in her world again.

* * *

"Um, Mr. Chamberlain? Can I speak with you for a minute?"

Olivia walked into her boss's office on Monday morning – August 1. Ever since she'd ended things with Brett, he'd been giving her the cold shoulder, but if they were going to continue working together then they'd have to talk sooner or later.

Chamberlain looked up from his computer monitor, a frown on his face. "What is it, Anderson? I'm busy."

"I'm going to drop off some paperwork," She said. "I was just wondering if you needed anything."

"I'm fine," He barked. "You can go now."

Olivia turned to leave, casting one last look over her shoulder as her boss stared angrily at his laptop. Something was up with him…but what?

She shook her head. Whatever it was, he'd get over it.

* * *

"Okay Spencer," Louise said. "Tell me what you found."

The young associate yawned from his end of the phone conversation. "Sorry – I think I'm gonna call off work today, I was up all night trying to crack this firewall. But I finally made it through and I…I think there's some stuff in there you'll want to see. I'm emailing you screenshots right now."

"Alright," Louise said. "I'll call you back when I'm done?"

"Sure," Spencer agreed. "And Louise? Be careful."

Louise hung up and eagerly opened her email. Once Spencer's message had loaded, she began to flip through the screenshots he had sent her – all of them were of what seemed to be financial transactions. And they immediately peaked Louise's interest.

They were all made out to the same bank, spread over several years. It didn't sound familiar, and when she typed it into Google she saw something peculiar – it was in the Cayman Islands.

Flipping through the screenshots again, Louise's eyes widened with realization. There were even more deposits, all made to the same account and once again spread over several years. The number of money in each deposit corresponded with an amount that had been deposited in the bank from the Caymans, and subsequently going through a convoluted path of wire transfers before returning to New York. It would seem innocent enough if you weren't looking for something amiss, but altogether like this – she knew exactly what was going on. She stood up and grabbed her purse – she needed to find Nolan.

Brett Chamberlain was a money launderer.

* * *

"You slept with Drew?!"

"Sshh!" Charlotte chastised Hailey, who had nearly burst her eardrums when she screamed on the other end of the phone. "The whole world knows now thanks to you!"

"I just…I can't believe it," Hailey gasped, quieter this time. "I thought you two hated each other!"

"We did," Charlotte conceded. "But now I…I like him. I feel like we've finally reached an understanding. He's just been through a lot…both of us have."

"We'll talk about this more at work today," Hailey said. "I need details. And Nolan wants us to meet in Manhattan – we have to consult with this firm about an urgent lawsuit. I'll text you the address."

"Okay," Charlotte said, seeing Drew begin to stir in his sleep. "Catch you later, bye." Once Hailey hung up, Charlotte got up and walked back towards the bed, slipping on her clothes from the night before. "Hey, get up." She said, shaking Drew gently. "We're gonna be late for work."

"It's my day off," Drew said sleepily. He moved into a sitting position and began to play with Charlotte's hair, eliciting a slight smile from her as she re-buttoned her pants. "Come back to bed. Let's just spend the day together…"

"I'd love to, really." Charlotte insisted, putting on her shoes. "And last night was great. But I have to go to work. I'll call you later, alright?"

Drew pouted, but gave in. "Fine," He agreed. "Call me when you get there." Charlotte nodded and got up, now fully dressed, casting one last look over her shoulder before she walked out the door.

Later, she'd really regret not staying in that bed all day.

* * *

"Crap."

"What's wrong?" Jack asked, rolling over in bed to see Amanda sitting up, clasping her bra, her cell phone sitting beside her. "Everything alright?"

"Yeah," She said, looking at him over her shoulder as she unfurled her inside out shirt from the floor. "I was just supposed to go with Nolan to this law firm in the city today – this urgent thing with one of our lawsuits. I'll just have to cancel I guess…"

"Actually," Jack said. "What if I just…go with you? You know, since it's important to Nolan. And…to you."

Amanda smiled. Her husband was so kind and understanding. How had she gotten so lucky? "Yeah, okay. Let's go."

* * *

"Well, well," Nolan said when he saw the familiar faces walking towards him. "I thought I was down two revengers and I gained two strays." Much to his pleasure, Amanda and Jack looked back to their usual selves. Louise, however, appeared antsy, and Hailey kept shooting Charlotte side-eyed glances. "So, hopefully we'll be able to reach a settlement in our case today –"

Suddenly, something else caught Hailey's attention. "Mom?"

Nolan turned around and sure enough, he saw Olivia walking towards them. "Hi," She said. "I was just dropping some stuff off for work. What are you guys doing here?"

"Nolan's making us work ungodly hours," Hailey said teasingly. "And even though I should be home right now, I'm stuck here to settle a lawsuit." Olivia cracked a smile.

"You know," Nolan said impulsively. "While you're here…can I talk to you for a second?"

Olivia nodded. "Okay…"

After telling his crew to meet him inside, Nolan walked with Olivia back towards his car so they could talk in private. "I'm starting to think you really are following me," He said jokingly, to lighten the tension.

Olivia laughed - they'd reached his private car by now, which was parked not too far from the law firm. "How do I know you're not the one following me, hmm?"

With a smile, Nolan leaned up against the car door. "I just wanted to talk…about yesterday. I've been thinking about it a lot."

"Me too," Olivia agreed. "But I mean…I think we agree that we can move on as friends, right?"

Nolan tried to hide his dismay at her reply. "Of course – friends."

She touched his arm. "I just want to say…that I'm really proud of all you've accomplished. I always knew you could do it. And David did too."

He smiled forlornly. "He'd be proud of you, too."

"How so?"

"Because – you're a really good mom. And I know he'd have a lot of respect for that."

Olivia looked away, trying to hide her increasing emotion. "I'm just going to focus on Hailey for a while. No relationships, no distractions."

Nolan gave her a look. "But I thought…Hailey said you were…"

"Seeing someone? Not anymore."

"Oh…" Nolan said. "Well…I'm sorry."

Olivia smirked. "I'm not."

An awkward silence followed. "Well," She finally said. "I have to um…get back to work."

"Right," Nolan said. "I'll see you later?"

"Right." After exchanging an uncomfortable goodbye, she started to walk away and Nolan watched her retreating form until it disappeared. Unbeknownst to the other, they were both thinking the same thing at that very moment: _I still love you._

But as he opened his car door – in hopes of taking a moment to compose himself – Nolan didn't have that much time to mull it over. Because suddenly, there was the loudest sound he'd ever heard.

 _Boom._

He turned around and his knees immediately buckled. There was fire – fire everywhere. Screaming, relentless screaming. He looked around, calling out Olivia's name frantically before he even realized he was doing it, but she was nowhere to be found.

That was when the world stopped turning.

And nothing was the same ever again.

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 9:55 a.m.**

 **The Bronx, New York**

 _We try to prevent bad things from happening._

Spencer slammed on his brakes as soon as they reached their destination – a remote warehouse in the outskirts of The Bronx. "This is it," Nolan said. "Come on, let's go."

"You guys go," Spencer said. "I'll wait in the car and keep an eye out. Hurry!"

Nolan and Hailey both climbed out of the car, Hailey taking the lead as she practically ran to the warehouse. She needed to find her mom, she needed to know what the Hell had happened –

Hailey froze in place when she saw the FBI van parked out front. Nolan stopped behind her once he caught up. "Oh my God…"

 _We do everything we can to save those we love._

The warehouse doors flung open and Hailey spotted her mother – being escorted out by a team of agents, her hands behind her back. "Hailey…" Nolan began, but the young girl only stared ahead, tears already starting to pool in her eyes.

 _But sometimes it's not enough._

"Olivia Anderson, you are under arrest for money laundering and committing acts of terror against the United States..."

 _You can't prepare yourself for a tragedy. Sometimes it comes…_

"No, no, no!" Hailey screamed. "Mom, no!" All Nolan could think to do in his shocked state was to pull her back. He held her against his chest with both arms, his eyes remaining transfixed on the horrible sight before him. As she was shoved into the back of the van, Olivia looked up and her eyes met his. She looked terrified. Against his body, Hailey thrashed and squirmed, continuing to scream.

How could this be happening again?

… _without warning. And all you can do is watch it unfold._

"Mom, no! Mom! _Moooom!_ "


	6. Moments Later

**A/N** : Sorry this chapter is shorter than usual guys, I have had a crazy busy week and I've been writing at a snail's pace. I hope you enjoy it anyways and as always, reviews are very much appreciated.

 **Disclaimer** : I do not own _Revenge_.

* * *

 **August 1, 2016 10:25 a.m.**

 **Manhattan, New York**

 _The moments after a tragedy are extremely chaotic._

Once they arrived at the FBI headquarters, all of them immediately found themselves separated – each of them being taken off to their own interrogation before they could even comprehend what was happening.

"I told you," Amanda said. "I'm not comfortable with this line of questioning, and you can't keep me here."

"I don't know anything," Jack told the agents. "Now can you please tell me what you've done with my wife?"

"This is absolutely insane!" Charlotte exclaimed. "None of us had anything to do with this and you are crazy if you think we did!"

"Look," Louise said. "The person you should be looking into is Brett Chamberlain! He is the real criminal here!"

"I know my rights," Drew sighed. "So unless you are charging me with something, I'd like to leave now."

"I barely know Olivia Anderson," Spencer said. "But I know her well enough to know this all must be a huge mistake."

"Miss Anderson?" The agent said. "Can you talk to me about your mom?" Hailey looked up with tear filled eyes, arms crossed over her chest, and didn't speak a single word.

 _You must pick up the broken pieces of your life._

"Mr. Ross," The agent interrogating him said. "You've known Olivia Anderson for a long time, correct?"

"We met in college," Nolan said. He leaned forward, visibly annoyed. "Olivia is innocent."

"Is that so?" The agent said. "You have any proof for that?"

"With all due respect," Nolan replied. "The NYPD does have a track record for falsely accusing innocent civilians of terrorism. Does the name David Clarke ring a bell?"

"David Clarke was a tragic accident. An accident which the FBI has no intention to repeat. We would not be proceeding forward with this case unless we had evidence."

"Which is?"

The agent crossed his arms and leaned up against the wall. "I'm not allowed to discuss that."

Nolan looked up at him defiantly. "I guess this discussion is over then."

 _And you must decide where you will go from here._

Finally after what felt like an eternity, the group were all free to go. "I think we've all had enough for one day," Nolan addressed them, taking a distressed Hailey under his arm. "I'm going to drop Hailey off at my place for the night. We'll…we'll regroup tomorrow, okay?" The group nodded and dispersed unenthusiastically. Nolan pulled Hailey into his side but she only stared at the ground desolately.

 _Even though it feels like you will never be okay ever again._

* * *

The entire ride to Nolan's place was dead silent.

Hailey stared blankly ahead the whole way, and didn't say a word or even make a sound. Nolan would shoot a side-eyed glance at her every now and again, but he didn't even know where to begin. What could he possibly say to the girl whose mother had just been unjustly arrested for such a heinous act of terrorism?

Once they pulled into the driveway, Nolan got out and walked around to Hailey's side of the vehicle. He opened the door and found her just sitting there, not looking like she had any intention of moving, and still staring. "Hailey," He began. "We're here. Come on, I'll take you to the guest room." With a slight sigh, Nolan leaned over so he could unbuckle her seat belt - he supposed he'd have to help coax her inside. "You need your sleep, Hailey. It's been a long day."

With Hailey tucked under his shoulder, Nolan walked into the dark house and flicked on the entryway light. "There's a spare toothbrush in the bathroom cabinet, and towels if you want to shower or take a bath or anything," He said, trying to be accommodating. "Actually, just help yourself - anything you want in the house, it's yours." Hailey said nothing, in fact she didn't make any indication that she'd heard him at all, as they walked down the darkened hallway.

They finally reached the guest room and Nolan turned the light on, before gently lowering Hailey into a sitting position on the bed. "I think Amanda might've left some stuff here you can wear," He said, trying to be cheerful in spite of the circumstances as he searched the dresser. "Here we go. T-shirt and shorts. They're probably a little big for you, but they're clean and good for sleeping in." He extended the spare clothes to Hailey, but she didn't take them, she just stared at them in his hands. Finally, he just dropped them unceremoniously on the bed next to her in defeat. "Umm," Nolan said awkwardly. "Have you eaten today? I'll go get you some food, you umm...change."

After raiding the cupboards for any suitable food source, a nervous Nolan returned to the room a few minutes later with tea and snacks. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Hailey had moved - her blouse and jeans discarded in a pile on the floor, she was curled up under the blankets with her back facing him. He placed the food down on the bedside table. "Is there anything else I can get you?" No answer. He sat down tentatively on the edge of the bed, and hesitantly touched Hailey's shoulder. "We'll talk in the morning, okay?"

Once again finding himself being met by silence, Nolan stood up and headed for the door. He looked down at his own dirty, dust-covered appearance, thinking about himself for the first time in hours. This was all a lot to take in for him, he couldn't even imagine what it was for Hailey...He looked at her over his shoulder, a lump under the covers with blankets shrouding her face, and sadly closed the door behind him. He'd give her some time alone.

As he made his way to his own bedroom, he heard what he thought sounds like sobbing.

* * *

"You have got to be kidding me,"

Early the next morning, Amanda, Jack, Charlotte, Louise, Drew and Spencer all arrived at the Ross & Associates office to find it filled with FBI agents. "Excuse me," Amanda said to the nearest one. "But what exactly do you think you're doing?"

"We have a warrant to search this entire premises," The agent explained, before retrieving a piece of paper out of his pocket and handing it to an irritated Amanda. "You can read over it if you'd like."

Amanda crumpled the paper in her hands. "…I need to call Nolan," She said, before storming out. Sensing she was upset, Jack went after her.

Louise sighed. "I think I could use some air too." She tucked her purse under her arm and walked towards the elevators.

"Well," Spencer said, addressing his remaining co-workers. "At least things can't get any worse."

* * *

"Hailey? Are you awake?"

Nolan hesitantly pushed open the door to the guest bedroom, finding Hailey exactly where he'd left her the night before – curled up in a ball, with the covers pulled over her head. "Hailey?" He repeated. Still no response. Nolan walked over to the windows and threw open the curtains, plunging the dark room into light. Hailey, still, did not budge. "Hailey!"

"Go away," She mumbled, still shielding her face with the blankets. "I want to be alone."

Not taking no for an answer, Nolan sat down at the edge of her bed. "I'm just worried about you," He said.

After a moment, Hailey pulled the covers down. Her hair was mused and her eyes were still red from crying. "Please just leave me alone."

Nolan opened his mouth to object, but then he paused. Hailey looked absolutely devastated and as she looked at him with pleading eyes, he couldn't help but give her what she asked for. "I'll be back soon," He said, standing up. "And when I come back, you and I are going to talk." Hailey only rolled over and pulled the blankets back over her head in response.

Nolan sighed, shooting one last look at her before walking out the door. He had other urgent matters to attend to today.

* * *

Louise paused mid-step when she caught a glance of a familiar face. She stepped back, being jostled by the impatient pedestrians – some of whom shot her dirty glares for stopping in the middle of the sidewalk. She ignored them however, instead staring intently through the window of the five-star restaurant on Main Street. Sure enough, her eyes did not deceive her – she spotted Brett Chamberlain, currently accepting his check from the waiter and making friendly conversation. The sight made her blood boil – a real terrorist was out enjoying a nice meal, while the woman who her friend loved was sitting in a jail cell for his crimes. She dug into her purse, wondering if she could get a private detective to get a tail on him before he left the restaurant, but when she looked up he was already gone.

Suddenly, Louise felt a hand on her shoulder. "Oh, sweet Jesus!" She yelled, jumping around and finding one Brett Chamberlain was now less than a foot away from her. She placed a hand over her heart and took a step back, because being physically close to him made her feel immediately uncomfortable. "Lord, you…you scared the living daylights out of me!"

"Louise Ellis, right?" Chamberlain said. He tried to close the distance between them and Louise backed away again, but Chamberlain persisted. She was pressed up against the window now, nowhere to go.

She tried to play it cool, pushing her hair back and tucking her purse under her arm. "That's right. Brett Chamberlain, correct?"

Chamberlain nodded. "I know we've never had the pleasure of meeting before," He said. "You'll have to excuse my overzealousness. It's just that I saw you the other day…"

"At the FBI headquarters?" Louise asked. So he'd seen her with Nolan then? What was he trying to do? She slipped a hand into her purse, feeling around for her can of pepper spray – when someone you knew had just been framed for terrorism, you had to be prepared for any possibility, you know. Who could blame her for packing, really?

"I saw you waiting on my way out," Chamberlain explained. "It really is a shame, isn't it? That your ex-husband is getting you dragged into his mess?"

Louise felt her grip on the pepper spray loosen. "My…my ex-husband…"

"I saw Nolan Ross with Olivia Anderson at my office. When I told the agents that they should interview him, I had no idea you'd get dragged into this too. After everything he's put you through, he's still causing you more pain…"

The gears in Louise's brain were turning rapidly. Of course the public knew about her and Nolan's divorce – though they had no idea that the marriage had been a complete sham in the first place. Sure Nolan had attended her parties, but Chamberlain had never seen him there. Brett Chamberlain had no reason to think she was anything but a disgruntled ex-wife.

She shook her head. "You're absolutely right," She said. "I thought I was finally done with that man, but he…but he just can't let me move on…"

"I completely understand – my first wife was just as vengeful." Chamberlain paused, looking at her thoughtfully. "Would you like to perhaps…grab dinner with me tonight? Call me crazy, but I feel like you and I…understand each other."

Louise's first thought was disgust – his ex-mistress had just been arrested, so now he had to go out and find a new one? But there was another part of Louise's brain that knew an opportunity had just presented itself to her. Because by getting closer to Brett Chamberlain…she might be able to find proof of Olivia's innocence.

Louise plastered on her biggest and brightest smile. "Why, aren't you a sweet talking thing! I'd love to!"

* * *

Jack found Amanda sitting in the front seat of his truck, doors locked, her knees pulled up to her chest. He knocked lightly on the window and she looked up, smiling weakly when she saw it was him. She unlocked the doors and Jack climbed inside, sliding into the passenger seat. "Hey. Are you alright?"

Amanda looked away, seemingly deep in thought. "After my father was arrested and they took me to that foster home, I remember that I just sat there on the floor for hours. Just backed into the corner of the bedroom, pulled my knees up to my chest, and stared at nothing. I must've stayed there for days. It felt like an eternity. I was too in shock to do anything else. And I keep wondering what Hailey is doing now…" She shook her head. "It's the worst kind of déjà vu."

Jack looked down, both of them sitting in silence for a long moment. "I think we should help her," He said finally, meeting Amanda's eyes. "I think we should help Olivia."

"You want to work for Nolan?" Amanda said, incredulous, and Jack nodded. "But you hate revenge! You didn't want me anywhere near it."

"It's not revenge, exactly. It's justice." He explained. "It's not like we're taking someone down, ruining someone's life, pulling out the red Sharpie. We'll just help Nolan find evidence, take the case to trial, and make sure Olivia goes free. That's it."

Amanda eyed him hesitantly. "And you're sure about this?"

"I'm sure," Jack said. "You relate to Olivia and Hailey because of your father. And with me...I can't help but think about when I was arrested, and I almost lost Carl. Only this isn't just a DUI - it's terrorism. I don't want Olivia to have to go the rest of her life without seeing her child again. If I can do something to stop that from happening, then I will."

"Okay then," Amanda sighed. "We're doing this?"

Jack nodded affirmatively. "Yeah, we're doing this."

* * *

Charlotte sighed when she returned to her desk after the FBI's departure, finding it having been completely overturn. Her drawers were still open, clearly having been rummaged through, papers strewn across her desk. She picked up a fallen down picture frame, the glass having been smashed in the agents' haste. She frowned as she looked at the image she kept there – her, Amanda, and their father from the Christmas of 2014, the first and last holiday they would ever spend together. She'd kept it on her desk since her first day. "Hey," Drew said, his voice diverting Charlotte's attention back to the matter at hand. "I know it's a bad time…a really, _really_ bad time…but can we talk? About the other night?"

Charlotte nodded, pushing her hair behind her ear. "Yeah, um…sure. Go ahead."

Drew walked over, catching sight of the shattered frame in her hand. "I know it seems so trivial compared to everything else that's gone on," He said. "But I wanted you to know…I had a really good time with you. And I wanted to ask you out."

Charlotte shook her head. "Drew…"

"I'll even splurge on caviar and champagne if that's what you want," Drew continued. "Or we could see a movie, or we could just go back to my place and I could make you dinner... Honestly, it doesn't matter. I just really want to take you on a real date. Pretend to be normal people for just one night."

"Drew, that's so sweet. But…" She trailed off. "I don't know if that's a good idea."

"Charlotte," Drew insisted. "I like you. I like you a lot, actually…"

"And I like you too, but the timing is just…just awful. I can't start a relationship right now, not with everything that's going on." Charlotte shook her head. "I had a lot of fun with you Drew, but this – this can't be anything serious, right now. I'm sorry, but I can't."

Drew nodded and looked down, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Right," He said. "Right, I totally understand. I should've known better…"

"Drew, it's not you it's –" Charlotte started to say, but Drew was walking away before she could finish. She exhaled loudly.

And her crappy day had somehow managed to get even crappier.

* * *

As he sat at the metal table in the cold, dark room, Nolan felt the worst kind of familiarity. Sitting in a dim room, waiting to see a person who he knew damn well didn't deserve to be in this predicament. He didn't understand - how could this be happening again?

He looked up when he heard the door open and his mouth fell open slightly when he saw her – she looked so frail, the orange jumpsuit engulfing her body, her wrists stuck in handcuffs, bags under her eyes and her hair pulled back sloppily. The corrections officer placed her down into the chair roughly, before stepping back to watch them with a critical eye.

"Do you mind?" Nolan asked. "I'm her counsel."

"I'm sorry, sir." He said. "But you can't get attorney-client privilege unless you're actually an attorney."

"Nolan, please." Olivia said feebly. "It's not worth it." She lifted her hands up and placed them on the table, obviously attempting to seek some kind of physical contact. After a moment Nolan reached out, trying to intertwine their fingers to the best of his ability with her in handcuffs.

"How are you holding up?"

Olivia shook her head. "I feel like this is all just a bad dream…But it's not. I'm awake. And my wildest nightmares…are so much better than this."

"I'm going to get you out," Nolan told her. "I'll get a team of my best employees, and everyone is going to help…"

"What about Hailey?" Olivia asked. "Is she okay?"

"She's at my house right now," Nolan told her. "She's…she's pulling through." He couldn't tell her that Hailey had locked herself in the guest bedroom, anyway.

"Okay," The prison guard said, rejoining them and taking Olivia roughly by the arm. "Time's up."

"But we haven't even had two minutes!" Nolan protested.

"Come back tomorrow," The guard told him, and he escorted Olivia out of the room before she could even say goodbye.

* * *

"Hailey? Hailey, come on. Open up! I know you're in there!"

Spencer sighed as knocked on the front door to Nolan's place for the tenth or so time in a row. He knew she was inside – the blinds were drawn tight, but he could catch a glimpse of her shadow slowly and sadly slinking around the house. "Come on, Hailey." He said. "Just talk to me, please."

A moment later he heard the sound of the lock turning, and then the door opened – just a crack, so he could just catch a peek of Hailey, standing there and staring at him with her big, tear-filled eyes. "Can't you just leave me alone, Spencer?" She said. "I just want to be left alone."

"I just want to help you," Spencer said. "I want to help you get through this."

"You have no idea what I'm going through."

"This exact situation? No, I don't." Spencer conceded. "But I do know what it's like to worry that you may never see your mom again. I know that pain like it was yesterday. So, can I come in?"

 _What do you do when the worst thing has happened?_

After a pause, Hailey stepped back and opened the door. "Come on," She mumbled. "Before I change my mind."

Spencer followed her inside and Hailey dropped back down to her spot on the couch. Across the coffee table, a wide array of items were laid out – her computer open to a legal website, an untouched mug making a coffee ring on the glass, a notepad splayed open with balled up pages thrown all over the floor, as well as some crumpled tissues. "What's all this?"

 _What do you have to do to survive?_

"I've been trying to do some research. Just…just anything I can do."

Spencer looked at her, and it was evident she was about to cry again. "Hey," He said, touching her shoulder. "We are going to do everything we can for Olivia, alright? We all know she's innocent."

Hailey nodded. "I just…I just can't imagine a life that doesn't have my mom in it." And then she started to cry.

Hailey fell forward, her face on Spencer's chest, and he pulled her in, both arms around her. "Sshhh, sshhh," He whispered. "It's okay, I'm here for you…"

 _What do you have to do to hold it all together?_

* * *

They stumbled into the apartment blindly, a mess of flying hair and lipstick prints and shedding clothes. They kicked off their shoes, unbuttoned and unzipped, she dropped her purse. He led her to the bed without tearing apart their lips and slammed her down – hard – before climbing on top of her.

As Brett Chamberlain began to press a series of wet kisses to her neck, Louise paused to catch her breath. She hated the sensation of his mouth on hers – and she hated touching him, and she hated acting like she liked it. Every moment of their dinner had been completely and utterly painful as she listened to him talk about himself, laughed at his terrible jokes...and acted like she wanted to go home with him at the end of the night.

Chamberlain looked up, his hair mused, a wicked grin on his face. "You want to stay over tonight?"

Louise forced her most dazzling smile. "I'd love to." Chamberlain grinned and went back to making himself busy, kissing down her collarbone. She clenched the edge of the bed and glanced around, spotting the open closet door – and catching a glimpse of what looked like a safe tucked away inside.

She had to remember that this was all for a greater purpose.

… _What do you have to become?_


	7. Presumed Guilty

**A/N** : So this chapter is a little shorter than usual again guys, I'm sorry. I already have the next chapter written and it's longer, but I don't think I'll be able to update on Sunday because this weekend I'm going to Disney World for my junior class trip, and I'm not allowed to be in the hotel room except to sleep. (They are literally kicking us out of the hotel rooms from 7 am to 11 pm which is totally stupid but like...whatever.) So I don't know, maybe I'll update on Friday before I leave or Tuesday when I get back, but I'll probably just skip next week. Sorry :(

(Also, I know in real life it would probably take months or even years before Olivia's case would be taken to trial, but I don't want to do a time jump like that so let's just pretend that the justice system in my story works really really fast.)

 **Disclaimer** : Yeah I don't own _Revenge_.

* * *

 **August 26, 2016**  
 **Southampton, New York**

 _One of the most important concepts in the American justice system is innocent until proven guilty._

"Okay," Nolan said, peeking out the window through his blinds. "I'm going to go out first. I want you to wait five minutes, and then go out the back. The car will meet you there."

"Why can't I just come with you?" Hailey protested. She walked indignantly up to the window and peered out, but she immediately reeled back when she was caught off guard by the bright, flashing lights of cameras snapping away.

 _But try telling that to the press._

"It's a media firestorm out there," Nolan explained, dropping the blinds back into place and going to retrieve his briefcase. "And I promised your mother I'd look out for you."

"How did they figure out I was here?"

"The paparazzi are professional stalkers," Nolan said. He examined himself in the mirror, straightened his jacket, re-arranged his hair – if he did have to have his face plastered all over the tabloids, he might as well look his best right? "Just do what I tell you and you'll be fine. But if a reporter does manage to find you, you don't answer any questions – got it?"

"Why shouldn't I tell them our side of the story?" Hailey asked and Nolan shot her an annoyed look.

"We'll tell our story on our day in court. Those vultures don't deserve a second of your time." He paused as he reached the door and touched Hailey's shoulder. "You'll be fine. Promise." Hailey smiled appreciatively and then, with a deep breath, Nolan stepped outside.

"Mr. Ross, care to comment?"

"Mr. Ross, what made you decide to represent Olivia Anderson?"

"Mr. Ross, is your client guilty?"

 _High profile crimes operate under an entirely different set of rules._

Hailey peered discreetly out the window, watching as Nolan made his way through the throng of nosy reporters to his car. Grabbing her purse, she slipped off towards the back door, ready to meet Nolan there in five minutes. She opened the door and was immediately blinded by a series of flashing lights.

"Miss Anderson, are you going to see your mother?"

"Miss Anderson, what is the nature of your family's relationship with Nolan Ross?"

"Miss Anderson, is your mother a terrorist?"

 _It's guilty until proven innocent._

* * *

Louise speed off down the road, the roof down on her car and the beach air whipping her hair. "Hi, hun." She said, once she reached Brett Chamberlain's answering machine. "I was hoping you'd join me for lunch at the South Fork today, but I understand if you're busy. It's just with the trial about to start, I thought you could probably use some company. Call me back later, bye-bye now." After she hung up, she gagged a little. She really didn't want to spend more time with him, but after weeks of pretending to like Brett Chamberlain had turned up very little proof, she needed something solid with the trial just days from beginning.

Louise glanced in her rear-view mirror but then she looked up. Behind her, a black Maserati was gaining on her quickly. "Whoa there, Speed Racer," She mumbled to herself, moving to the right lane so the speedster could pass. But oddly, when she switched lanes, the Maserati did too.

Increasing her speed a little, Louise tried to focus on just driving. Glancing in the mirror again after a few moments, she saw that the Maserati had switched over to the left lane and was rapidly approaching. She dismissed it, thinking he had finally decided to pass, and went to find a radio station to listen to. Then, _wham_.

Louise looked up with a gasp, finding the black car driving right alongside her. _Wham, wham_. He purposefully smacked the side of her car, once then twice, rattling the whole vehicle. "What in the Lord's name…!" Louise mumbled. She glanced at the car and caught a glimpse of the driver through the dark windows – it was clearly a man, but he was wearing sunglasses and while his hair looked dark, the windows made it hard to tell.

Louise tried to drive away but before she could the Maserati struck her forcefully, sending her skidding off to the right. She desperately grabbed at her wheel, trying to steer her car as it span out of control. Seeing her struggle, the black Maserati immediately accelerated and sped off. Louise slammed on her brakes, stopping her car with a screeching halt before she could slam into the railing. She turned and watched her assailant flee, trying to focus all her energy on trying to memorize their license plate, before the Maserati disappeared over the horizon.

Someone had just tried to run her off the road.

* * *

"Why are we going to trial already? Isn't it a little soon?"

Nolan looked up at Olivia's worried face, which stared at him from across the crude metal table. Next to him Hailey stared at her hands, unable to look at her. Olivia looked like she had lost a little weight, her cheeks hollow, and it was obvious that she was exhausted. After all, no one really slept well in prison.

"Well since we entered our not guilty plea the trial could've really started at any time." Nolan explained. "Personally, I think it's a strategy by the prosecution–"

"What do you mean?" Hailey interjected nervously.

"They probably think the sooner they do the trial, the less evidence we'll have." Nolan explained. "But all we have to do is establish reasonable doubt," He assured the two women. "And we will, because Olivia is innocent."

Olivia nodded feebly. "So two days,"

"Two days," Nolan affirmed. "But we're not going to call you to the stand the first day, so you can have a little while longer to emotionally prepare."

"I don't need to emotionally prepare," Olivia insisted. "I just want to get up onto the stand and tell everyone how that bastard framed me."

Nolan nodded. "Well, alright then. I'll be back tomorrow." He and Hailey rose, Nolan shooting the nosy guard a dirty look, and Hailey hugged her mother tightly.

"I love you, honey." Olivia whispered.

Hailey buried her face into her shoulder. "I love you too." Nolan watched forlornly as the two women embraced, Hailey not wanting to let her mother go, Olivia unable to fully hug her back because of her shackled hands. It hurt him to see these two women who he had grown to care about in so much pain.

He just had to remind himself that this would all be over soon. That was all he could do.

* * *

"Honey, are you coming to bed?"

Brett Chamberlain looked up from his computer screen to find his wife standing in doorway to their bedroom. Sonya Chamberlain was leaning up against the door frame, her dark hair cascading down her shoulders, her petite body clad in a sexy set of red lingerie. Usually it would be enough to make Chamberlain immediately relent, but tonight there were more pressing issues on his mind than getting his wife to bed. "I'll umm...be right there."

Sonya raised an eyebrow at him. "It's Saturday night, Brett. You don't need to work right now. Unless the thing you're working on is getting me undressed..." She slid one of her straps down her shoulder in a clear attempt to be seductive, but her husband was unfazed.

"Just a few more minutes, Sonya, alright? It's important."

His wife rolled her eyes. "Fine. But you're missing out." She said, before disappearing back into the bedroom.

Once he heard the sound of the shower turning on, a sure sign that his angry wife would be exiling him to the sofa again, Chamberlain pulled out his cell phone and played the voice mail over again one more time. _Hi there Brett, darling._ said the voice of a particular, shaken-sounding Southern beauty. _I umm...have to cancel. This...thing came up. So sorry. Talk to you soon. Bye-bye._ It was all he'd heard from his mistress since yesterday - perhaps things were going to plan after all? _  
_

Switching screens on his computer, he typed in the password to his private email account. But when he read the message that had been sent to him earlier, his face fell. "Oh no." This wasn't good - not good at all...

* * *

"What the Hell do you mean you quit?"

When Amanda exited the back room of the beach club Sunday night after closing, she found Nolan still sitting at his same table, papers for the trial strewn out in front of him, angrily talking to someone on his cell phone. She refilled Hailey's glass of orange juice and the younger woman smiled appreciatively.

"Well, same to you." Nolan said, annoyed. "Yeah, goodbye." He hung up, visibly irritated. "I cannot believe this!"

"What's going on?" Jack asked as he walked inside, Charlotte in tow, each of them carrying a box. Inside they had all their evidence so far – Chamberlain Financial statements, notes from Olivia's day planner, reports from previous lawsuits involving Chamberlain, anything which could possibly help in the slightest.

"I have bed news," Nolan sighed, while his four friends and colleagues gathered around the table. "The lawyer I hired just quit."

"The night before the trial?" Charlotte said. "Why?"

"The paparazzi found out he was representing Olivia and followed him home. He said this is too much for him."

Hailey groaned and covered her face with her hands. "What are we going to do?"

The door opened again and in strode Spencer and Drew. Charlotte visibly tensed with she locked eyes with the latter and Drew glanced away quickly, not looking at her again.

"Hey," Nolan said to them. "Where's Louise? I told you to go pick her up on your way here."

"We stopped by the manor but she wasn't home," Spencer explained. "She's probably on her way here right now."

With a sigh, Nolan scrolled through his phone contacts until he found Louise's name. The last thing he needed was another problem right now. Excusing himself, he left the rest of the group to problem solve as he walked off to the side to make the call. The phone rang several times before she finally answered.

"No…Nolan…"

"Where are you?" He asked. "Is everything okay? You were supposed to be here. We're having a crisis right now…"

"I…" Louise stuttered. "I need you. Urgently."

Nolan opened his mouth to object, but then closed it. The way Louise spoke to him, she sounded completely desperate. "Where are you?"

Once he'd finished his call with Louise, Nolan returned to the rest of the group. "Hey, I have to leave for a little while." He told them. "Amanda and Jack are in charge while I'm gone."

"Where could you possibly have to be right now?" Drew asked.

"Is this about Louise?" Amanda added.

"I'll explain later," Nolan said. "But right now I really have to go." And without any other explanation, he was gone.

* * *

"So, do you have a plan?"

Amanda looked up as Jack rejoined her behind the bar. She was refilling all of their group's glasses for what had to be at least the third time since Nolan had left – so far they'd gotten absolutely nowhere. "I'm thinking,"

"And?"

She shrugged. "I don't know yet – why don't you come up with something?"

"I'm thinking too," Jack told her. "But I figured if anyone had a plan it would be you."

"I don't know exactly where we're going to find a qualified lawyer in the next several hours – and we're not sticking Olivia with a public defender."

The couple looked back over to their table, where the rest of the group were currently going over their options – Hailey had her face in her hands, Spencer and Charlotte were engrossed in a discussion, and Drew was tracing circles on the tabletop. "Drew took his bar exam, right?" Jack said. "Did he pass?"

Amanda shook her head. "Won't know until the fall, so that won't do us any good."

Jack sighed. "It's too bad none of us are lawyers…"

Suddenly, both of them looked at each other, each coming to a realization at the same time. "Unless…" Amanda began.

"Are you thinking the same thing I'm thinking?"

"I think I am."

Jack immediately pulled out his phone and went to his contacts – it was the third number listed, right after Amanda and then Nolan. He lifted the phone to his ear. "It's ringing…"

His wife smiled. "We just might pull this off after all…"

* * *

Nolan double-checked to make sure he had the right address once he arrived at the strange apartment door, only to find it was in fact the one Louise had given him. Maybe he'd written it down wrong? Hesitantly, he knocked on the door, waiting for an answer.

It opened a crack a moment later and Louise peered out. Once she saw it was Nolan, she opened the door wider to let him inside. "Nolan," She gasped. "I…I…"

"What's wrong?" Nolan asked. "Are you alright?" He brushed Louise aside and stepped inside, only to immediately freeze in place. "Oh my God."

Because sprawled out across the floor, was a body.

* * *

 _Legally, we are all entitled to the same presumption of innocence._

The crowd swarmed them immediately as the car pulled up outside the courthouse steps. As she watched the craziness outside her window, Olivia found it difficult to breathe. The trial of the century was about to begin, and she was at its center. Yet Nolan was still MIA – no one had heard from him since he'd left the beach club last night, and with no Nolan and no lawyer Olivia felt absolutely hopeless.

Amanda opened her door and helped her out while Jack and Drew cleared the way for them ahead. Amanda kept her hold on Olivia's arm, guiding her forward, while Hailey buried her face into Spencer's neck. Charlotte reassuringly grasped her friend's hand for moral support.

There was a collective sigh of relief from all of them when they saw their leader waiting for them at the courthouse entrance. "What the Hell happened to you last night, man?" Jack asked, greeting Nolan with a quick hug. "And where's Louise?"

"Louise is...under the weather," Nolan explained. "But she sends her best." He turned to Olivia and touched her arm. "You look great. Are you ready?"

"If it means I'm one step closer to being a free woman again," Olivia said. "Then yeah, I'm definitely ready."

"What's the status on our lawyer?" Nolan asked.

"Plane delay," Amanda said. "But we still have an hour until the trial is supposed to start and I am being texted updates every ten minutes,"

"Better make it five," Nolan said, before turning back to Olivia. "Don't worry. Our case is sound. By the end of this, everyone will believe in your innocence as much as I do."

Olivia nodded. "I trust you. With my life."

Nolan smiled. "Come on – let's go inside." He looked at the rest of his friends and colleagues. "As a team." He turned to walk inside and his group followed, a united front.

No matter what happened, they were in this together – and they weren't going down without a fight.

* * *

 _But in the court of public opinion, we are not so lucky._

Drew glanced up briefly when he heard the door to the men's room open, but he did a double take when he saw who it was. "Charlotte? What the Hell?"

The young woman walked over, leaning up against the sink next to Drew. "We're still attorney-less," She said. "And with less than twenty minutes to go. I…I don't know what we're going to do. Please just tell me everything will be okay."

"Everything will be okay,"

"No, you're just saying that."

Drew laughed. "I just can't win with you, can I?"

Charlotte smiled half-heartedly. "I really just need to get my mind off of this right now…" She looked up, her eyes meeting Drew's, and there was a long pause. Her lips were so close to his, full and red, and if he leaned in just a little bit he could kiss them…

The door to the bathroom opened and in stepped a random man, who paused wide-eyed when he saw the sight before him. Drew glared. "Out!" The disturbed civilian didn't need to be told twice.

Charlotte immediately burst out laughing, which made Drew do the same. "Okay, I think that got my mind off it," She said between giggles. Their laughter died down and they looked at each other again.

"Sorry," Drew began. "I…" He trailed off, and Charlotte nodded slowly, biting her lip, as if she knew what conflicting thoughts were currently on his mind. That was all it took. Drew grabbed her by the waist and pulled her in – and then he kissed her, hard.

Charlotte kissed back almost instantly, her hands on Drew's cheeks. He hoisted her up, her legs around his waist, and without detaching their lips he staggered off into a stall, locking the door behind them.

* * *

 _As we are judged by a jury of our peers, our public appearance can seal our fate._

The minutes on the clock ticked by – 9:05, 9:10, then 9:20. Charlotte and Drew slipped into the silent courtroom quietly, sliding into the front row where Nolan, Amanda, Jack, Hailey and Spencer were currently seated. The duo found themselves on the receiving ends of some pointed looks from Charlotte's sister and brother-in-law, who were surely wondering why they were coming into court late.

The judge lowered her glasses down on her nose and looked at Olivia, who sat alone. "Miss Anderson, where is your counsel?"

"On the way, your honor," Olivia said. "There was a delay at the airport –"

"I believe we've taken up enough of this court's time, Miss Anderson." The judge snapped. "If your attorney is not here in the next two minutes, you will have no choice but to accept a public defender."

"That won't be necessary, your honor." A voice chimed in, and everyone turned to look at the person standing at the courtroom double doors. When they saw who it was, Amanda and Jack both smiled.

The judge frowned and eyed the woman who had just walked in. "And just who might you be?"

 _So you better work damn hard to make yourself look innocent._

She smiled assuredly, her head held high. "Stevie Grayson for the defense, Your Honor."


	8. True Confession

**A/N** : Okay guys, so here's the deal: bad news is there's only two more chapters after this one, BUT good news is there _will_ be a sequel to this story! So I know it doesn't seem like we're heading to a conclusion, but that's because I'm setting the stage for book two. The goal is for you to leave this story with some resolution but also some questions. Hopefully you're not confused though - everything makes sense to me, but I also wrote it and I know where I'm going and you don't. If you get lost or anything, just tell me and I'll clear it up for you. Enjoy the chapter!

 **Disclaimer** : Don't own _Revenge_.

* * *

 **August 28, 2016 10:33 a.m.  
Manhattan, New York**

 _Do you solemnly swear that you will tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?_

"So, Mr. Chamberlain, the FBI did determine that the illegal transactions came from your computer, correct?"

As he sat on the witness stand, Brett Chamberlain gulped nervously. In front of him the federal prosecutor – one Richard McKenzie, he was a middle-aged man with a receding hairline and a pinched expression – paced back and forth, his hands behind his back. "That is correct," Chamberlain said, trying to keep his cool. He glanced at Olivia, who was staring at him from her side of the courtroom, her attorney – Ms. Grayson – furiously writing down notes by her side. In the first row behind them they all sat – Nolan Ross, those married friends of his and the wife's kid sister, his two positively irritating employees…and Hailey, who was currently giving Chamberlain a look that was nothing short of murderous.

 _That is the promise one must make when they take the stand in a court of law._

"But Mr. Chamberlain," Mr. McKenzie continued. "You did not launder any money, did you?"

"Correct," Chamberlain affirmed. "Every day at work I take two cigarette breaks, the same times every day – ten-thirty in the morning and two in the afternoon. All of the records show that any illegal transactions made on my computer were completed at approximately those times."

"And who, Mr. Chamberlain," said Mr. McKenzie. "Would have known that you would be away from your office at those times every day?"

Chamberlain glanced towards Olivia. "That would've been my secretary, Olivia Anderson."

 _But how many people actually honor that oath?_

"Why would Ms. Anderson have wanted you to take the fall for her crimes?"

"I'm ashamed to admit this," Chamberlain said. He looked down and Olivia scoffed to herself when she saw him feign tears. "But I…I was unfaithful to my wife. With Ms. Anderson, on multiple occasions." There was a collective gasp around the courtroom and the reporters – who had been let it reluctantly by Judge Norwood, albeit without their cameras as per protocol – began to buzz with excitement at this revelation.

"Order, order," She said with a few light raps of her gavel. Judge Anne Norwood was an older woman, whose many years in the courtroom were evidenced by the distinct lines around her pale blue eyes. "Mr. Chamberlain, please continue."

 _How many people perjure themselves on the stands each year?_

Chamberlain nodded. "It was just a few times – I regretted it, I told Olivia we had to end the affair. I really do love my wife…" He smiled at the petite, raven-haired woman who was sitting in the front row, on the prosecution's side of the courtroom – Sonya Chamberlain smiled at him encouragingly. Did this woman actually believe the B.S. her husband fed her?

Olivia rolled her eyes. "Oh, please." She didn't realize at first that she'd actually said it out loud.

"Control your client, please, Ms. Grayson," Judge Norwood said.

"You see," Chamberlain continued to Mr. McKenzie. "When I told Olivia it was over, she was so angry. She said she would make me pay…"

"Objection!" Stevie said.

"Overruled," Judge Norwood replied. "But let's get back on track, shall we Mr. McKenzie?"

"Of course," Mr. McKenzie said. "I'd like to present at this time The People's Exhibit A, Your Honor. It was discovered by the police in Ms. Anderson's desk at Chamberlain Financial," He pulled out a little plastic baggie, and Olivia mentally cursed when she saw the note inside. Mr. McKenzie placed it down in front of Chamberlain. "Mr. Chamberlain, would you please tell the ladies and gentlemen of the jury what this is?"

"It's my computer password,"

"And Mr. Chamberlain, would you please tell me who it was that wrote down your computer password on this piece of paper? Was it Olivia Anderson?"

"That bastard had me copy his password down," Olivia whispered to Stevie. "He's been setting me up this whole time!"

"Objection," The lawyer said to Judge Norwood forcefully. "Not only is this a compound question, but Mr. McKenzie should know that the witness is unqualified to answer."

"Your Honor," Mr. McKenzie said. "I do have an expert who is willing to testify that this is Olivia Anderson's handwriting…"

"Then save this for that witness, Mr. McKenzie," Judge Norwood said. "Objection sustained."

"But if I might say Your Honor," Chamberlain interjected. "I've seen Olivia Anderson write many times…and this is her handwriting."

Mr. McKenzie smiled. "No further questions," He said, before slinking back to his table.

 _And how many people actually get away with it?_

Nolan turned away from the action when he felt someone slip into the spot next to him. "Louise, what are you doing here? I thought we agreed you were going to wait for me at my place!"

"You think I was going to miss that man testifying?" Louise whispered back. "You should put me on the stand, I have a few choice words about him…" She glared at Chamberlain on the stand and when he caught sight of her, he visibly paled.

"The court will take a brief recess," Judge Norwood announced. "Ms. Grayson, you may ask any questions you have for this witness when we return. Until then, court is adjourned."

 _Can you tell when someone looks you in the eye…_

"Come on," Louise said, grabbing Nolan by the arm as everyone rose from their seats. "I wanna talk…about last night." Nolan nodded solemnly.

… _and lies to you?_

* * *

"A man was found dead in his Upper West Side apartment this morning. Thirty-one year old Lucas Barlow was discovered in his apartment by a neighbor around eight o'clock. Mr. Barlow was a suspected member of the domestic terrorist organization, The American Liberation Party, who took responsibility for Times Square bombing earlier this month. Interestingly, today is also the beginning of the trial of former Chamberlain Financial employee Olivia Anderson, who is accused of laundering money for the terrorists who planted the Times Square bomb. Foul play is currently not suspected in Mr. Barlow's death…"

Louise shut off the news report, which she'd played for Nolan on her iPad. The two were currently sitting in Louise's car while court was in recess, so they could be alone. "Lucas Barlow," She said, more to herself than to Nolan. "I didn't even know his name."

"Go over this story with me again," Nolan said. "I'm still not sure I'm fully understanding. I know you said you saw him following you but…How did you get to his apartment?"

"I saw his car, pulling into his apartment parking garage," Louise explained. "I knew it was his, because it was scratched on the side where he hit me, and I was able to memorize part of his license plate when he drove off. His parking space had his apartment number so I waited until I saw the car pull out, and then I went inside. The doorman had fallen asleep so I got up to his apartment easily." Louise paused, her eyes closed, and Nolan could tell she was trying to hold back tears. "His door was open. I walked in and…he was just lying there. I knew he was dead. I called you because I didn't know what else to do." She glanced at Nolan now. "You don't think anyone will realize we were there, do you?"

"You said you didn't touch anything, right?" Louise nodded. "Well, I guess we just have to hope no one saw us. We were lucky the doorman was out cold…" Nolan shook his head. "Louise, why would this man have been following you? Is it because of Olivia or…"

A look crossed Louise's face that Nolan couldn't name – it wasn't anger exactly, more like…like fierce determination. Like she was going to make someone pay. "Brett Chamberlain," She said. "Brett Chamberlain asked him to kill me."

Nolan gawked at her, completely floored by this statement. "What? Why would Chamberlain want to kill you?"

"Because he found out I was trying to find evidence against him."

"And how exactly were you doing that?"

"I had an affair with him."

Nolan raised his hands in the air in exasperation. "Anything else you want to tell me? Did you kill a puppy on your way to the courthouse today?"

Louise gave him a look. "I hated being with him, Nolan, but I thought it was what I had to do."

"I can't believe you slept with him! _Him!_ " Nolan exclaimed. "Louise, why did you put yourself in that situation…?"

"I wanted to help you, alright?" She said. "You and Olivia deserve to be together. And hey, you and I had a fraudulent marriage, at least I didn't elope with him!"

Nolan leaned his head back and rubbed his temples. "So, how do you think Chamberlain figured you out?"

"I don't know," Louise replied with a shrug. "I did try to crack the lock on his safe a few times while I was over at his place. Maybe he noticed something was off…"

"Well, he sure knows that you played him now that you showed up to court,"

"I'm sorry," Louise said emphatically. "I was trying to help! I didn't mean to make a mess of things…"

Nolan sighed. "It's okay. I know you meant well. I'm just glad you're safe…"

"Do you think Chamberlain killed him?" Louise asked. "Because he didn't succeed in killing me? I know they said the police think it was an accident but…shouldn't we do something?"

Nolan shook his head and put his face in his hands. This was all too much. "I don't know Louise. I honestly don't know…"

* * *

"Hey, can we talk?"

Charlotte looked up, and saw Drew approaching her. She smiled hesitantly. "Hey, you." She rose to her tiptoes, clearly reaching for a kiss, but Drew stopped her by placing a single finger over her lips.

"Not like that. We need to talk."

Her smile turning into a frown, Charlotte took a step back. "Okay…" She said nervously. "So…talk."

Drew sighed. "Charlotte, I…I can't do this."

She stared at him for a moment, and then she realized he wasn't kidding. "Are you serious?" Charlotte laughed hollowly. "But you…you were the one who said you wanted to be together."

"But not like this," Drew said softly. "You were right, this isn't the time for a relationship. I want to _be_ with you. Not sneak around with you like we're some dirty little secret. And now's not the time for that."

Charlotte looked down, and shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. "You're right," She said. "This…this isn't the kind of relationship I want. And not the kind you deserve."

With a slight smile, Drew placed a hand on her cheek and tilted her face up so she could look him in the eye. "When this is all over…"

"Of course," She said, not needing to let him finish. "Of course…"

For a moment neither of them said anything and she closed her eyes, pushing her cheek against his hand. When they looked away from each other again, they noticed that everyone around them had disappeared, filing back into the courtroom.

Lowering his hand from Charlotte's face, Drew took her by the arm instead. "Come on – we gotta go back."

* * *

"Are you sure you're ready?"

Stevie shot an annoyed look at her son as Jack asked her this same question for the umpteenth time so far today. "Trust me, I'm prepared. I went over everything you sent me on the plane ride over. Everything will go fine."

Amanda smiled and touched her worried husband's shoulder before turning back to her mother-in-law. "Thank you for doing this for us, Stevie. It means so much to us, and to Nolan…"

"Anything for the two of you," Stevie promised, causing the couple to smile.

Charlotte and Drew returned now, exchanging a covert look between them. Hailey was close behind, Spencer by her side. "How are you holding up?" The latter asked.

Hailey shook her head. "I feel like my legs might give way at any moment." She said, and Spencer grabbed her arm to steady her. She smiled appreciatively, then glanced at her mother, sitting in her spot up front. "I'm so worried about her,"

Spencer nodded – they'd reached their seats by this point. "We're going to do the best we can. And I trust Nolan with my life – you should too."

As court was called in session, Nolan and Louise slipped inside – the last to rejoin – and made their way back to where the rest of their group was seated. "Hey," Jack whispered as Louise slipped in next to them. "You feeling better?"

"What?" Louise asked.

Nolan nudged her. "You were sick, remember Lulu? But you're feeling _so_ much better now."

"Oh, right," Louise said, realizing the lie he'd told. She turned to Amanda and Jack and smiled brightly. The two were clearly a little confused, but didn't question her any further, instead focusing their attention back on the trial.

"Mr. Chamberlain," Stevie said, approaching the witness stand. "You admitted that all of the illegal transactions were made on your computer, correct?"

Chamberlain nodded. "Yes, that is correct."

"But you claimed that they couldn't have been you – because you take a smoke break at the same time every day, correct?"

"Yes…"

"Mr. Chamberlain," Stevie said. "Would you please roll up your sleeve for me?"

The man looked at the prosecutor, clearly confused. "I…I don't understand,"

"Objection, Your Honor," Mr. McKenzie said. "Relevance."

"My motives will soon become crystal clear, Your Honor," Stevie promised. "Just give me a moment."

"Overruled," Judge Norwood sighed. "Please roll up your sleeves, Mr. Chamberlain – and get to the point, Ms. Grayson."

Chamberlain muttered something under his breath as he slipped off his jacket, then rolled up the sleeves of his button down shirt. He held his arms out so everyone could see – and on his arm was a distinct square.

"Mr. Chamberlain," Stevie said. "How long have you been using the nicotine patch to quit smoking?"

"I, uh…" Chamberlain floundered, retracting his arms quickly. From her seat, Olivia couldn't contain her smile. "A couple months, I guess."

"When exactly, Mr. Chamberlain?"

"I don't know exactly!" Chamberlain sighed. "It's been about a couple months …"

"So if you've been using the nicotine patch for the past couple months," Stevie replied. "Then why have you still been taking smoke breaks twice a day as recently as five weeks ago?"

It was clear from the look on Chamberlain's face that he was completely floored. "I…I mean I just started using it. I…I guess it's not working for me yet."

Stevie smiled and held her hands up in surrender. "Alright, alright. But there is another thing I find curious about these transactions…" She walked back up to her table and retrieved some papers, then placed the first in front of Brett Chamberlain. "Mr. Chamberlain, can you read the highlighted sections for the court please?"

"On March 31, two first class tickets to Los Angeles," He read. "$5,000. April 15 – pearl and diamond pendant from Tiffany's. $3,100. April 22 – one night at The Plaza Grand Penthouse Suite. $10,500."

"That is your credit card bill from one random month of this year," Stevie explained. She handed Chamberlain another paper. "Once again, please read the highlighted section, Mr. Chamberlain."

"March 22," He read. "$6,000. April 1 - $5,000. April 14 - $10,000."

"Now that," Stevie clarified. "Are transactions which were made to Chamberlain Financial in that same month. Each one of those funds came from an account that the FBI has identified as belonging to The American Liberation Party – the same account that you have alleged Olivia Anderson illegally laundered money for. Yet, you made purchases of similar amounts, mere weeks after these funds were channeled to your company. Was this your share of the profits?"

"Objection!" Mr. McKenzie declared. "Ms. Grayson is simply sharing a theory!"

"Withdrawn," Stevie said. "Now Mr. Chamberlain, can you read something else for me?" A disgruntled Brett Chamberlain took the paper begrudgingly. "The highlighted section please,"

Chamberlain resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "I'm so sick of all these people," He read. "This country that we live in has fallen so hard – it used to be ours, and now it's theirs. All these idiots, I want…" He swallowed, seeing the next line. "I want to blow them…bleeping sky high."

"Mr. Chamberlain," Stevie said. "Did you send this email?"

Chamberlain glanced at Mr. McKenzie, clearly blindsided. "…Yes, I did."

"And to whom did you send this email to?"

"…Maxwell Hanna."

Stevie raised an eyebrow. "Is this the same Maxwell Hanna who just pleaded guilty to planting a bomb in the law office of Goldberg & Kendrick, the same bomb which blew up Times Square on August 1?"

Chamberlain looked around nervously. "Yes, that's the one."

"So you were telling an admitted terrorist how you wanted to blow the American people sky high?"

"I didn't mean it!" Chamberlain exclaimed. His face had turned red from anger and he half rose out of his seat. "He was a client of mine, how the Hell was I supposed to know he was a terrorist? And those purchases – so what if I like to buy my wife nice things? It's not like I don't have plenty of money! Olivia Anderson is the real terrorist here, not me!"

"Control yourself, Mr. Chamberlain!" chastised Judge Norwood. "And Ms. Grayson – please remember that Mr. Chamberlain is not the one on trial here."

Stevie looked at Chamberlain and shrugged. "You admitted to having an affair with Olivia Anderson," She said. "How do we know that you weren't the real jilted ex-lover?"

"Objection!" Mr. McKenzie thundered.

"Withdrawn, Your Honor," Stevie said with a pleased smirk, as she sauntered back to her place. "No further questions for this witness."

As the people around them began to chatter away, Nolan leaned over to address Spencer and Hailey. "I think it's time we pay Maxwell Hanna a visit."

* * *

"That was amazing," Charlotte said emphatically as the revengers cleared out of the courtroom. Nolan and Louise had walked ahead, talking about something in hushed tones, while Hailey and Spencer hung back so the former could have a moment alone with Olivia before she was escorted back to her cell – that left her, Amanda, Jack and Drew with Stevie. Charlotte grabbed her sister and brother-in-law by the arms and told Jack: "Your mother is my new hero."

"All in a day's work," Stevie said proudly. "People who are guilty usually don't cover their tracks as well as they thought they did."

"You are seriously a rock star!" Charlotte said and Stevie laughed.

"In all seriousness, that was great," Amanda added. "If that didn't establish reasonable doubt, I don't know what will."

"Honestly?" Drew chimed in. "Maybe the judge will throw the case out after this…"

* * *

"You know how much I hate saying goodbye."

Olivia nodded, rubbing up and down Hailey's arm. "I know, Hailes. But I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

Hailey nodded – over her mother's shoulder she could see the prison guard watching them, clearly ready to take Olivia back. "Spence and I are going to talk to this Hanna guy – you'll be out of here in no time."

Spencer – who had been standing a few feet back – walked over now. "Ready to go?" Hailey nodded feebly, then hugged her mom one more time.

"I love you," She said.

Olivia smiled. "Oh, Hailes. I love you too. More than anything."

The two reluctantly pulled apart and Hailey began to walk out with Spencer. She shot one last look over her shoulder before she followed him out to his car.

"Ms. Anderson," Someone said, catching Olivia off guard. When she turned, she saw that prosecutor Richard McKenzie was currently making his way over to her.

McKenzie turned to the prison guard. "Do you mind if I have a moment with Ms. Anderson?" The guard only muttered incoherently in response, backing up a little to give them space to talk but so he could still ensure there was no funny business.

"Mr. McKenzie," Olivia said with a smile. "Are you here to apologize and tell me your case is over?"

"Oh, quite the opposite," McKenzie replied. "I'm here to discuss a deal."

"A deal?" Olivia repeated. "Like a plea bargain?"

McKenzie smiled. "I saw you with your daughter – you love her a lot, don't you?"

"Of course – she's my child. Are you threatening her, or something?"

"No, not at all," He insisted. "I'm just simply saying…you want a life with your daughter don't you?"

"Yes, I do." Olivia answered. "And I'm going to have one, after this jury finds me not guilty."

"Or they could find you guilty and you could get life in a federal prison. Or worse." McKenzie said, and Olivia's face fell at the thought. "Is that really the kind of life you want to live, Ms. Anderson? Only a couple hours with your daughter, if you're even around to have visitors?"

"I won't say I did something I didn't do," Olivia persisted, but her voice was wavering. "I'm innocent."

"And maybe you are," McKenzie conceded. "But the jury might not think so. It's your choice Ms. Anderson – you can take your chances, or you can take my advice, and be able to hug your daughter again someday, without the handcuffs." He smiled, and waved goodbye to the guard. "Have a nice evening." Then he turned and walked out the way he came.

The guard came back over, handcuffs in hand. "Come on," He said gruffly, taking Olivia's arms. "Time to go."

"Could you maybe…" She began. "Not cuff me this time?"

The guard shook his hand and shackled her hands. "Protocol."

Olivia sighed as he took her by the arms and began to led her out to the prison van. As she was roughly ushered back to her confinement, she couldn't help but think about what McKenzie had said.

* * *

Hailey had thought that her mother's prison was the worst place you could possibly be – but as she sat next to Spencer, waiting to see Maxwell Hanna, she thought this place was so much worse. It was sparse, dirtier – they hadn't even been allowed to see Hanna in person, instead having to sit behind a glass wall and talk to him via a telephone.

"You okay?" Spencer asked, touching her knee.

Hailey shook her head. "I just can't imagine my mom spending the rest of her life in a place like this…"

The duo sat up a little straighter when Hanna was brought out to see them – Hailey instantly thought he looked like the kind of person who caused trouble. He was short but stocky, bald with a scar on his forehead and a tattoo of a half-naked blonde woman on his left arm. He picked up the phone on his end and Hailey did the same. "Well, well," He said. "If it isn't the terrorist's daughter. Hailey, right?"

"My mom is _not_ a terrorist," Hailey said forcefully, and Hanna laughed out loud.

"Yeah, okay." He said. "Of course she's not,"

"Look," Spencer said – there was only one phone so he and Hailey had to share it in order to talk to Hanna, and they both had to cram onto the same stool. "We came here to talk to you about Olivia Anderson's trial."

"What that gotta do with me?" Hanna said. "I didn't deal with the money stuff…"

"We know that you know Brett Chamberlain," Hailey told him. "And we want you to agree to testify against him."

Hanna paused for a long moment, chewing on his lip. "…What's in it for me?"

"Nolan Ross & Associates will agree to represent you at sentencing," Hailey offered. "We've never lost a case – we'll get you twenty-five years, opportunity for parole, it's the best offer you're going to get."

Hanna grinned, exposing a bad tooth when he smiled. "I get to cause Hell for that bastard _and_ get out of being a lifer? I'm in."

Spencer smiled. "Good doing business with you."

* * *

"You sure you don't mind me spending the night here?"

Nolan looked up from the file he was reading as Louise walked over towards him, a bathrobe wrapped tight around her body. "I mean," She said. "I feel bad about you having to sleep on the couch, with Hailey in the guest room and me in your bed…"

"It's okay," Nolan insisted. "I'd rather you be here than alone in your house, when Chamberlain might send someone else after you. And I can't exactly leave Hailey alone either…"

Louise smiled and sat down next to him on the couch, touching the side of his face. "You're a real gentleman, Nolan Ross." She pressed a kiss to his cheek and he smiled.

"Like I told you once before, Lu," He said. "My friends are my family."

Louise turned, looking at the muted TV, and her face fell. "They're still talking about him…"

Nolan looked up and saw a picture of Lucas Barlow on the TV screen. Without hesitation, he grabbed the remote and immediately flicked it off. "They think it was an accident," He told her. "But it has to do with Olivia's case, so they're all over it."

"But it wasn't an accident," Louise said. "It was murder." She shook her head, going silent for a moment. "Do you think we should go back to his place?" She asked. "Just to see if we could find…something…"

"No way," Nolan said forcefully. "Louise, we barely made it out unscathed the first time. If someone finds anything that could lead back to us…"

"I know, I know." Louise sighed. "I just…I just feel bad. He probably has a family, Nolan. Don't they deserve the truth?"

Nolan shook his head. "Well sometimes you just can't tell the truth."

Louise rose from the couch, her hand on Nolan's shoulder. "I'm gonna turn in," She said. "It's been a long day."

Nolan nodded and squeezed her hand. "See you in the morning for day two."

Louise smiled at him over her shoulder as she made her way to the master bedroom. "And if this Hanna fella says the right thing, hopefully the last one."

* * *

"Can I ask you guys something?"

Amanda and Jack looked up to meet Olivia's gaze – it was the morning of the second day of her trial and she'd turned around in her seat to face them. They were currently the only three of their group there yet – Stevie had gone to take a phone call from her office, Hailey was with Spencer, Nolan and Louise were having another private conversation, and Charlotte and Drew were wherever it was that Charlotte and Drew disappeared to.

"Sure," Amanda replied. "Whatever you want."

Olivia bit her lip, clearly nervous to say what was on her mind. "…Do you think I should plead guilty?"

Amanda and Jack both stared at her – they didn't know what they'd been expecting her to say, but it wasn't that. "Why would you do that?" Jack said. "You're innocent."

Olivia glanced over to the prosecution and then back again. "McKenzie was talking to me yesterday," She explained. "He said that if I plead guilty, then I'll get a lesser sentence. What if the jury doesn't rule in our favor? I might never see Hailey again!"

"Olivia," Amanda began. "Chamberlain's testimony went even better than we could've hoped it would, and Hanna has agreed to testify on your behalf. You shouldn't be worried about that right now."

"And think about it this way," Jack added. "If you take this offer, you'll get twenty-five years – at least. That's a huge chunk of Hailey's life that you'll miss. But _when_ you're found innocent, you'll get an entire lifetime with her."

Olivia nodded and turned back around in her seat, while the rest of their group returned. The entire courtroom rose as The Honorable Judge Anne Norwood was announced, Norwood making her way to her bench.

"Please be seated, everyone," She said. "Let's just get right to it. Ms. Grayson, please call your first witness."

"Your Honor," Stevie said. "The defense calls Maxwell Hanna to the stand."

 _They say the truth will set you free._

The entire courtroom turned around as admitted terrorist Maxwell Hanna made his way to the front of the room. He'd cleaned up a little, wearing a suit, but still looked extremely rough at the edges. His hand was placed on the bible as the oath was read to him, and Hailey saw him wink at her. It made her stomach churn.

 _Lies build up like a weight on your chest._

"Mr. Hanna," Stevie finally began once he'd been seated at the stand. "Please describe the nature of your relationship with Brett Chamberlain for the court."

"We met when I hired him to manage some money for me," Hanna explained. "We emailed a couple of times, but that was it."

At his words, Hailey froze. What was he talking about?

 _But for some people, they don't care as the weight just keeps piling up…_

"Mr. Hanna," Stevie said, trying to hide her surprise at this response. "Did Brett Chamberlain ever use terroristic threats, as far as you are aware?"

"You mean that email?" Hanna said. "Brett didn't mean it. He gets a little angry sometimes but come on – doesn't everybody?" From his seat next to his wife, Chamberlain couldn't hide his smile.

 _As they stand before us and only spew more deceit._

"Mr. Hanna," Stevie said. "This is not what you told us…"

"I know I told you that he'd done something wrong," He replied. "But I just said that because I was mad. Brett Chamberlain was not a part of the bombing. But Olivia Anderson was." He smiled twistedly, looking Olivia up and down. "Do you really think I'd forget such a hot piece of ass?"

Before she even realized what she was doing, Hailey was on her feet. It was as if her body was electrified by anger. "You are a liar!"

"Young lady!" Judge Norwood reprimanded. "One more word and you will be escorted out of my courtroom!"

"He's lying!" Hailey roared - she was so angry, her petite body was physically shaking. A court guard moved forward to take her out, but Spencer grabbed Hailey before he could, pulling her to his chest and walking her to the door. By this point, her fury had turned to tears and she blubbered and cried, grabbing onto Spencer for support, knees buckling.

"Mr. Hanna," Stevie said, practically pleading. "Please remember that you are under oath."

 _Some people are not bothered by the weight of their lies._

Maxwell Hanna only shook his head. "I got nothing else to say."

* * *

"Is that…apple pie?"

Nolan walked into his kitchen to find Louise, dawned in a frilly apron and pulling a pan out of the oven. "Hope you don't mind," She said. "I bake when I'm stressed. Or worried, or upset, or…hungry."

"It's fine," Nolan said, sinking down into the nearest seat. "Some Southern comfort food actually sounds really good after today."

"I am really sorry, sugar. None of us knew he was gonna get up there and say that…"

"I know," Nolan said, placing his head in his hands. "I guess that's what we get for trusting a terrorist, right?"

Louise smiled half-heartedly and began to cut him a big piece of pie. "Better start eating then. Should I make a plate for Hailey too, or is the poor girl still locking herself up in her room?"

"I don't think she's come out yet," Nolan sighed. "I think I'll go check on her…" He got up while Louise continued to serve out slices of dessert, humming under her breath, and Nolan was caught off guard when his phone rang unexpectedly. He checked the caller ID and answered immediately. "Hey Ams, what's up?"

 _As they pass the burden..._

Louise glanced up, seeing Nolan looking confused as he listened to whatever it was Amanda had to say on the other end of the phone call. "Whoa Ams," He said. "Slow down…" There was a long pause, and then his expression turned to one of horror. "I'll uh…I'll be right there."

"What's going on?" Louise asked once he'd hung up the phone.

Nolan looked up to meet her gaze, looking visibly stunned. "Amanda, Jack and Stevie are at the prison." He explained. "Olivia just confessed. To everything."

 _...onto us._


	9. Square One

**A/N** : We're in the home stretch now, guys. Only one more chapter after this one! I hope you're enjoying, and please review with your thoughts. And if you have any wishes for the sequel, I can try to make them happen. I aim to please, after all. I already started working on the sequel and next chapter I'll give you guys some teasers about what's to come.

 **Disclaimer** : I own nothing except the original characters I've created.

* * *

 **October 19, 1996 2:44 p.m.**

 **Massachusetts Institute of Technology**

 _We work so hard to get where we are._

"I'm gonna marry you someday."

Nineteen-year-old Olivia Anderson turned to look at her twenty-one year old boyfriend of over a year, Nolan Ross, who was currently watching her intently as they laid side-by-side in the grass. A fearful look crossed Nolan's face when he realized she'd heard him. "Did I say that out loud?"

Olivia smiled and kissed him firmly on the mouth. "I'm in love with you," She said. "And I would feel lucky to be able to marry you one day."

 _But then something happens which throws us off track._

Nolan smiled and brushed a stray hair out of her face, then kissed her again, soft and slow. "I love you." Suddenly, Olivia laughed. "What's so funny?"

"I was thinking about what our kids might look like," She explained, and Nolan laughed too.

"I'm really in love with you,"

"So you've said,"

"No, I mean I'm _really_ in love with you." He emphasized. "I can picture an entire life with you. The marriage, the kids, all of it, all the way up until we're old and gray and annoying everyone in our nursing home. I never thought I'd feel that way about someone – but you made me believe in love. So when I say that someday I'm going to marry you, I really mean it."

Olivia grinned – the kind of smile that lights your whole face up. She thread her fingers through his, and looked up to the sky. "I wish I could live in this moment forever." She said. "Cause right now? Everything is perfect."

 _Sending us back to the beginning._

* * *

 **August 31, 2016 8:35 p.m.  
Manhattan, New York**

 _And suddenly we're back at square one._

Olivia snapped out of her flashback when she heard the sound of footsteps approaching. She was currently waiting in the visitor's room, expecting Stevie to come in to reprimand her again, but instead she saw someone else – Nolan.

"Do you remember that time in college when we laid out in the grass," She said. "And we started talking about our future? You…" She laughed hollowly. "You said that someday you were going to marry me and have kids with me and we were going to grow old together. And we were so sure of it. It seemed so simple then, didn't it?" She shook her head, mostly to herself. "Sometimes I wish I could go back to that time..."

"Olivia," Nolan said, pulling out the chair across from her. "Why did you confess?"

Her eyes were beginning to glaze over. "It's not so simple now. I have Hailey. I have to do what's best for her…"

"And what's best for her is her innocent mother spending decades in prison?"

"How do you know I'm innocent?" Olivia snapped. "What if I'm guilty?"

"Because I know you!" Nolan replied. "God Olivia, there was a time when you were the most important person in the world to me!"

A silence settled between them and Olivia looked down, a tear rolling down her face. "Parenthood is a million times harder than you think it is. I thought I could never love anyone more than I loved you, but then I had Hailey and I…I couldn't live with myself if I took a gamble on our future together and lost."

"Well I'm not a parent," Nolan said softly. "But I know that if it was me, I'd want as much time with my child possible…And I sure as Hell wouldn't want to spend decades of my life in jail for something I didn't do."

"Isn't it a little too late now?" Olivia asked. "I already admitted to it."

"We'll make a plan." He assured her. "I'm not going to let you sacrifice yourself, Olivia. I won't let you do that."

Olivia nodded, then paused. "Can you promise me something? If I do get convicted…"

"You won't –"

" _If_ I'm convicted, I want you to promise to look after Hailey. Please." Nolan looked up, meeting Olivia's tear-brimmed eyes. "You're the only person I trust to look after her."

"…Okay," He said - he didn't want to think about the possibility, but he could give her this. After all he'd made the same promise to another parent years before, promising to look after their little girl. Hopefully though, this time it wouldn't be necessary. "Okay, I promise."

* * *

"You know, usually I'm not a pie for breakfast person, but it would be a shame to let it go to waste, don't you think so?"

Louise looked at Hailey, who was sitting across the table from her in Nolan's kitchen, picking at her pie and avoiding Louise's effort to make small talk. "It's all my fault…"

"What was that?"

Hailey looked up at her, her blue eyes welling with tears. "It's my fault." She repeated. "My mom never would have confessed if it wasn't for me…"

"Confessed?" Louise said, playing dumb. "Why, what ever are you talking about?"

"I heard you and Nolan," Hailey replied. "Talking about it last night. You'd think that for such an expensive house, the walls would be thicker."

Louise sighed, realizing she couldn't keep the truth from her now. "Nolan's trying to fix it. We're going to get the confession thrown out."

"I hate this," Hailey said, her face in her hands. "I just want to…do something!"

Louise frowned, watching the poor girl for a moment, when an idea dawned on her. "Maybe we can do something," She said, and Hailey looked up, confused.

"Like what?"

"Do you know what happened to your mother's stuff after she was arrested?"

"I think it's probably still in the old house," Hailey said with a shrug. "As far as I know, no one ever went to get it…"

"We'll go there this afternoon and look around," Louise offered. "Do you still have your key?"

Hailey nodded. "But Louise, you should know – we were staying in one of Brett Chamberlain's houses."

Louise only smirked in response. "Oh honey – Brett Chamberlain doesn't scare me."

* * *

Meanwhile in the courtroom, Nolan discreetly checked his phone for the fifth time since the trial had resumed – only five minutes previously. Amanda and Jack were on his one side, Charlotte, Drew and Spencer on the other – but Hailey and Louise were nowhere to be found. He wouldn't have been surprised if Louise had stayed home to stress-bake, but Hailey? Why would she not show up to her own mother's trial, and not tell him where she was? Was something wrong?

"Your Honor," Mr. McKenzie was saying. "I'd like to introduce a new piece of evidence for the jury – Olivia Anderson's confession tape."

Olivia sank down in her seat as a TV monitor was wheeled out to play the recording. She looked over her shoulder, glancing at Nolan. "Where's Hailey?"

"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury," Mr. McKenzie said, standing before them. "I'd like you to please watch this video – it shows Olivia Anderson confessing to all of her crimes, on camera. I think it will make this decision very easy for you."

He pressed play and the video began to roll. It showed Olivia, sitting in a room across from McKenzie – who was not visible, as he'd been standing behind the camera. She was staring at her hands, deep in thought.

"Come on Olivia," McKenzie's voice could be heard saying. "Alleviate your guilty conscience. That's why you called me here, isn't it?"

There was a long silence before Olivia spoke. She looked up, tears in her eyes. "Okay, fine." She said. "Okay, I did it. All of it."

"And by all of it," McKenzie's voice said, his smugness poorly concealed. "You mean that you laundered money to the American Liberation Party, and you knew about their plans to bomb Times Square?"

A tear slipped down Olivia's cheek. "Yes," She said. "I did it. I did everything. Can we stop now, please?"

McKenzie stopped the tape there and turned back to the jury, unable to contain his smile. "That is a clear as day admittance of guilt,"

"Your Honor," Stevie protested. "My client deserves an opportunity to defend herself. Mr. McKenzie clearly did not follow protocol here when he extracted this confession from an innocent woman."

"I didn't make her say anything she didn't want to say!"

"Your Honor –"

"Quiet, both of you!" Judge Norwood ordered. "Mr. McKenzie, Ms. Anderson has the legal right to testify in her own defense if she so desires. So, I have no choice but to agree with Ms. Grayson. Ms. Anderson, approach please."

Olivia got up, slowly walking to the front, it suddenly feeling so hard to put one foot in front of the other. Meanwhile next to Nolan, Amanda reached for her phone, which was vibrating in her pocket.

"Louise texted me," She whispered. "She wants backup at Chamberlain's beach house ASAP."

"You guys can all go," Nolan told the group. "I'll stay here with Olivia."

"Do you mind if I stay too?" Charlotte asked.

"Me too," Drew quickly added. Charlotte shot him a look. "What?" He said. "I'm interested as a prospective lawyer."

Nolan nodded in agreement, before turning back to the other three. "Keep me posted. And tell Hailey to text me, if you see her." Amanda, Jack and Spencer all agreed, before getting up and heading out of the courtroom as quietly as they could. By this point, Olivia had finished giving her oath and was settling into the witness stand.

"So Olivia," Stevie said, standing up. "Let's get started."

* * *

The trio found the door to the Chamberlain beach house unlocked when they arrived, Amanda, Jack and Spencer hesitantly stepping into the foyer. "Louise?" Amanda called out. "Hailey?"

Louise popped up, catching them all off guard – she'd been hidden behind the couch, obstructed from view. "Right here!"

"What's wrong?" Jack asked. "We thought there was an emergency." They walked over and found Louise sitting on the floor, in the middle of a mess of papers and books and other assorted items.

"Did a tornado blow through here by any chance?" Spencer said.

"I need y'all to look all over the house," Louise explained. She shoved a stack of papers in Jack's arms, since he was standing closest to her. "We're looking through Olivia's stuff for evidence."

"What kind of evidence could we possibly find in old phone bills and trash cans?" Spencer asked.

Amanda shrugged. "Who knows, it's worth a shot."

"Louise!" Hailey called and when they all turned they saw her running down the stairs, a large box in her hands. She smiled when she saw their latest additions, but was not deterred from the task at hand. She plopped the box down on the couch, revealing a bunch of books inside, all bound in the same brown leather.

"Are those…?" Jack began.

"Diaries?" Hailey finished. "Yes. Years of them, in fact. All of them belonging to my mom."

Louise stood up, her hands on her hips and a smile on her face. "Well," She said. "I guess we better start reading."

* * *

"Ms. Anderson," Stevie said, approaching the witness stand. "You asked Mr. McKenzie to meet you at the prison so you could confess, correct?"

Olivia looked from McKenzie back to Stevie, clearly unsure of what to say. Stevie nodded, and Olivia took that as a sign to tell the truth. "Yes, I did."

"But why did you do that?" Stevie asked. "If you had a guilty conscience, you could've pleaded guilty back at the beginning of the trial."

"Mr. McKenzie talked to me the other day after court," Olivia said. "He told me that if I plead guilty, I'd get a lighter sentence – and that it was the only way I'd be able to guarantee that I could ever see my daughter again."

"You love your daughter a lot, don't you?"

Olivia nodded vigorously. "More than anything in the world. I'd do anything for her."

"Including going to jail for something you didn't do?"

"Of course. I'd die for my daughter if I had to."

"Did Mr. McKenzie put any formal offer on the table?" Stevie asked.

Olivia shook her head. "No, I guess he didn't."

"Did Mr. McKenzie tell you that treason is a 43 level offense and therefore the penalty is life, no matter your criminal background?"

"No," Olivia said. "No, he did not…"

"So what you're saying is," Stevie said. "Is that Mr. McKenzie made a promise to you he could not keep in exchange for your confession?"

"Your Honor!" McKenzie exclaimed. He smacked the table, rising to his feet. "It's not my fault that the defendant didn't do her homework -!"

"Mr. McKenzie," Judge Norwood said. "Did you say these things to the defendant?"

"I didn't promise her anything, Your Honor." Mr. McKenzie said. "This confession is perfectly procedural –"

"I'm not sure it is, Mr. McKenzie." Judge Norwood responded. "You clearly did not follow protocol, and your methods resemble psychological coercion."

"Your Honor, I didn't threaten to harm anyone –"

"But you did use emotional blackmail! How can we trust a confession given under these conditions? I have no choice but to throw this confession out. Jury will disregard."

Stevie smiled. "No further questions for this witness,"

"Your Honor," McKenzie said. "May I question this witness?"

The judge nodded. "But tread carefully, Mr. McKenzie."

McKenzie approached the witness stand, his hands behind his back. "Ms. Anderson," He began. "You did admit to me that you were responsible for the Times Square bombing, correct?"

"I said that to protect my daughter!" Olivia protested.

"Mr. McKenzie!" Judge Norwood rebuked. "Move on! _Now_."

"My apologies, Your Honor." He said. "Ms. Anderson, is it true that you possessed the password to Brett Chamberlain's computer?"

"Yes."

"And is it true that you knew the times when Mr. Chamberlain took a cigarette break every day?"

"Yes."

"So you knew when he would be out of his office?"

"Yes…"

"And you admitted to having an affair with Brett Chamberlain, correct?"

"Yes, but –"

"And who ended this affair Ms. Anderson – Brett Chamberlain or you?"

"I did."

"Really," Mr. McKenzie said. "But Mr. Chamberlain said that he ended the affair, and you threatened him."

"He's framing me!"

"Or is it possible that you tried to set him up?"

"Objection!" Stevie said.

"Sustained," Judge Norwood agreed.

 _We work so hard to succeed, to get where we want to go, where we_ need _to go._

"Ms. Anderson, is it true that in the years of 1995 and 1996 you visited David Clarke – the man convicted for the downing of Flight 197 – in prison over fifty times?"

"Yes," Olivia answered. "But that's because I knew he was innocent."

At this point, Charlotte leaned over to whisper in Nolan's ear. "Olivia knew my father?"

"I'll explain later," Nolan whispered hastily. "Come on, pay attention." Charlotte leaned back hesitantly, clearly still confused.

"Or," Mr. McKenzie was saying. "Was it because you believed him to be a terrorist and were sympathetic to his plight?"

"Objection!" Stevie protested.

"Withdrawn."

On the stand, Olivia could feel herself beginning to physically shake. "Ms. Anderson," McKenzie said. "Do you really expect us to believe that a multi-billionaire CEO spent all this time organizing an elaborate plan to frame you – a girl who is known to have visited accused terrorists and is seemingly still jilted from a nasty break-up?"

"Mr. McKenzie!"

"Withdrawn, Your Honor." He said, looking at Olivia with a devious smile on his face.

 _And then something happens which destroys all of our hard-earned progress._

"No further questions."

* * *

 _So what do you do when you're sent back to square one?_

"I don't think there's anything in here," Spencer announced. The five of them had been looking through the journals for hours by this point. They were all spread out on the living room floor – Louise lying on her back by the couch, Amanda and Jack next to each other by the boxes, Spencer and Hailey together at the bottom of the main stairs. "Most of these aren't even recent. What does Olivia's high school crush matter to us anyway?"

"Kevin Martin," Jack said. "Yeah, I got a lot about him too. Including a page where she just wrote 'Mrs. Olivia Martin' over and over."

"Aren't all girls like that in high school?" Hailey said. "When I was fourteen, I was convinced I was going to marry Joey Campbell after our hands accidentally brushed in biology."

"I wasn't like that," Amanda said. "Granted, I was in juvenile detention for burning my house down and really didn't have time to think about boys." Hailey and Spencer both looked up, clearly having never heard this story before, while Amanda only nonchalantly picked up another diary. She began to flip through it and saw it was from the 90s. She was about to put it back when a word on the page caught her eye. She scanned the page quickly, surprised by what she saw, and then nudged Jack. "Read this," She whispered, shoving it at him.

Jack began to read it too, his eyes widening in surprise. "Nolan?" He whispered back. "This is about Nolan? _Our_ Nolan?"

Having overheard them, Louise immediately sat up and sshed them. She nodded over towards Hailey – who was currently preoccupied and paying no attention to them – and they got the hint. It was as if she silently saying: "Don't tell Hailey." The couple kept quiet as they continued to flip through the book, looking for more information. For pages and pages, the diary described all the intimate details of Nolan and Olivia's love affair – it even referenced the David Clarke trial on numerous occasions, and the man's innocence. But then suddenly, it just stopped – there was no mention of Nolan again after January 1997. Not even a passing comment.

Meanwhile across the room, Hailey absentmindedly flipped through diary pages, reading random passages. Then suddenly, she found something that caught her interest.

 _I sent a letter to MH today. He deserves to know - for Hailey's sake. It's the least I can do._

She leaned forward, engrossed by the words. Who was MH, and what did he deserve to know?

 _MH knows. He's not happy about it. I was hoping he'd take it better than this. He doesn't want to ever see me again – or Hailey, for that matter. My daughter deserves a father, and now she doesn't have one…And it's all my fault._

"Oh my God."

"What?" Spencer said, hearing her whisper the words. "Did you find something?"

By this point, the gears in Hailey's brain were rapidly turning. She knew so little about her father, only that he'd walked out on them when she was still very young. But these entries...it was clear to her: they were all about her dad.

She looked up at Spencer, meeting his worried gaze, and forced a smile. "It's nothing," She said. "Nothing at all."

* * *

 _You go back to the beginning._

"Well," Stevie said, approaching Nolan, Charlotte and Drew as the trial wrapped up for the day. "We can call a few more character witnesses, or other witnesses if you find them, but we're starting to run out of options."

"But that won't be a problem, right?" Charlotte asked. "All we have to do is prove reasonable doubt. I think we've done that, haven't you?"

"Look," Stevie said. "I think we've done the best we can with what we've been given. But you can never really be sure." She looked over her shoulder at Olivia, who had remained frozen in place since trial dispersed. "Poor girl. She doesn't deserve any of this."

"Come on," Drew said. "We'll walk you out."

The three of them started to leave, while Nolan decided to hang back for a moment. He approached Olivia, who was about to be re-handcuffed by the prison guard. "Can I have a moment with her?" He asked. Begrudgingly, the guard backed away.

Olivia turned towards him and Nolan saw that her eyes were filled with tears. "I can't do it." She said. "I can't…I can't hold it all together. I shouldn't have confessed, I ruined everything…"

Nolan shushed her. "Liv, none of this is your fau–" But he stopped mid-sentence when she practically collapsed forward, burying her face into his chest and grabbing onto him like a vice, catching Nolan completely off guard in the process. Hesitantly he lifted up his hands and hugged her, touching her back.

 _And start again._

"I won't let anything happen to you." He promised. "I won't lose you again."


	10. Judgment Day

**A/N** : This is it: the last chapter. It's sad, I know. But you can keep your eye out for the sequel - _The Revengers: Fire With Fire_ \- coming out this summer. I've already written about half the story and I'm hoping to have it ready to go by August 8th (get it? cause 8-8? double infinity day?). Until then, there's some teasers at the end of the chapter to hopefully get you excited for what's to come. Enjoy this last chapter!

 **Disclaimer** : _Revenge_ is not mine.

* * *

 **September 7, 2016 10:35 a.m.**

 **Southampton, New York**

Up in the front of the courtroom, McKenzie paced in front of the judge's bench. He was gesturing wildly as he gave a spiel to the jury about Olivia's guilt. On the other side, Stevie was watching him critically, while Olivia sat nervously next to her. The rest of them sat in their usual spots, waiting with baited breath. When he turned his head he could see Brett Chamberlain, who was smiling wickedly. The jury sat still hanging onto every word that McKenzie said.

 _I have never been a religious person, but those who are say there will come a day in which the world ends._

But Nolan wasn't listening to the words coming out of McKenzie's mouth – not really. He glanced at Olivia, and their eyes met briefly. She looked pale as death.

 _The Second Coming. The Day of Atonement. Judgment Day._

In his mind, Nolan could still see the face of the beautiful, happy girl who had laid beside him in the grass with no worries or reservations. But time had been so cruel to her, and now she had grown into a woman who – while still beautiful – was now bogged down by fear and loss. He wished that he could take her into his arms like he had that day in the grass and keep her safe from anyone who wanted to hurt her.

 _The day in which we must show all our sins and all our scars, opening ourselves up for the divine verdict._

Olivia looked away, snapping him back to reality. McKenzie had finished by this point and sat back down, looking triumphant. Stevie rose, sauntering towards the jury.

 _The day in which our fate is put into someone else's hands._

"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury," She began. "My client is an upstanding citizen, loyal employee, and loving mother. Sure she's made mistakes – but haven't we all? The truth is, we all could make the mistake of having a relationship with the wrong man. What would you do if someone exacted their petty vengeance, by blaming you for the worst terrorist attack on New York since 9/11?" She paused, making sure to make eye contact with each and every one of them. Down the row, Drew nodded his head.

"Appealing to them on a personal level," He whispered to Charlotte. "She's _really_ good."

Nolan turned his head when he felt Amanda slip her fingers through his, offering him a slight smile of encouragement, before taking Jack's hand in her other one. Nolan squeezed hers back.

"We have shown you that there are holes in this story," Stevie continued. "We have shown you the kind of person she really is – not the person they want you to see. If you have any doubt in your mind that Olivia Anderson didn't do this – any doubt at all – then legally you must let her go free. So, I simply ask you to think about this as you make your decision – what if it had been you? What if it had been you who made such a simple mistake, and paid an unfair price? What if it had been your mother? Because it very well could've been." Trying to conceal her pleased smile, she returned to her seat.

 _This is the day when our destiny shall be determined. Do we receive eternal salvation…_

Nolan scanned the jury, looking for any signs of emotion in their faces which would give away their thoughts. He found none.

 _…_ _or damnation?_

* * *

 **September 12, 2016 11:45 a.m.**

"Are you still reading that?"

Hailey looked up and pushed her sunglasses onto the top of her head, spotting Spencer approaching her. She sat up in the lounge chair where she had been absorbing the last of the summer rays, and quickly shut her mother's diary. She shrugged casually, while Spencer sat down across from her. "Just…being curious."

"Can I see it?" Spencer said, reaching for it, but Hailey ripped it away instinctively.

"It's umm," She stammered. "Personal."

Spencer raised his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay." He gave in. "But the trial's been over for almost five days – you don't have to keep reading those."

Hailey nodded, grabbing for her cover-up. "I'm worried," She admitted. "It shouldn't take them this long to say not guilty, right?"

He shrugged. "It depends – sometimes it takes hours, sometimes it takes weeks. But I have faith – we did our best, and we're going to keep fighting until everyone believes in Olivia's innocence as much as we do."

Hailey nodded, smiling hesitantly. How did he always know exactly what to say to her?

"How about a drink?" Spencer offered. "Me and Drew were just going to go get one – no alcohol for the underage girl, of course."

Hailey rolled her eyes, but accepted Spencer's hand as helped her stand up. "That sounds great."

* * *

"I have something for you two."

Jack looked up from wiping down the bar, meeting the gaze of Nolan, who was seated directly in front of him. Amanda returned to his side behind the bar, placing down the tray of dirty drink glasses.

"For us?" She said, beginning to load the dishwasher. "What for?"

Louise perked up from her spot on the bar stool next to Nolan. "Ooh, I know what it is!" She said, like a giddy child in on a secret.

Nolan dug into his briefcase and pulled out a piece of paper, extending it to them. Jack took it and Amanda looked over his shoulder so she could read it too. "The deed to the beach club?" Jack said.

Nolan nodded. "The two of you have been running this place for a while now," He explained. "I figured I'd just make it official."

"Nolan, this is too much," Amanda replied. "At least let us buy it from you…"

Nolan waved her off. "Consider it payment for all your help with the trial. And for being two of my closest friends. I owed you."

"Well what about me?" Louise said teasingly.

"Actually, I have something for you too."

Louise gave him a look. "Oh honey, I was just kidding…"

"Well okay," Nolan said with a shrug. "I guess you don't want a job then."

"Wait," She said, genuinely surprised. "Really?"

"Of course – that's what you wanted, wasn't it?"

Louise beamed and extended her pinkie towards him. "Wonder Twins?"

Nolan laughed and wrapped his little finger around hers. "Wonder Twins."

"What's going on?" Charlotte asked as she walked over. She was wearing a cover-up that didn't leave much to the imagination - you could see her string bikini under it.

"Nolan gave us the beach club," Jack said, extending the deed to her.

"Wow." She smiled at Nolan. "Hey Nolan, my birthday was just a couple weeks back and I _really_ want a new car…"

"You know," Nolan said, turning to Amanda. "You both really are the annoying little sisters I never wanted." The girls only smirked in response.

Hailey, Spencer and Drew walked inside now, just as Charlotte looked over. Her eyes locked with Drew's and they stared at each other wordlessly for a moment, before they both turned away.

"The gang's all here," Spencer said as the three of them sat down at the bar. "We need some drinks – and a Shirley Temple for the kid." He elbowed Hailey in the ribs and she shot him a playful scowl.

"What's that?" Nolan asked – when Hailey looked at where his gaze was pointed, she saw the little leather book was peeking out of her bag.

She shoved it back inside quickly. "It's nothing – just some leisure reading."

Amanda looked up and suddenly her eyes narrowed. Everyone turned to look and they all immediately spotted the subject of her pointed glare – the tall, salt-and-pepper haired man in the doorway, and the petite, dark-haired woman beside him.

"Who the Hell does he thinks he is," Amanda said, placing down the glass she was cleaning and walking over with determination.

"Amanda –" Jack began, but his wife ignored him, storming off to confront their unwanted guest. He dropped the rag in his hand back down on the bar and followed her, because he knew the look on her face all too well – there would be Hell to pay. The rest of the group exchanged a look, then got up and followed out of curiosity.

Brett Chamberlain smiled when he saw Amanda. "Table for two?" He said, sounding smarmy.

"I'm sorry," Amanda snapped at him. "But we don't serve pigs here."

Chamberlain chortled. "Ooh, good one. How long did it take you to come up with that?"

"Get out!" Amanda stepped closer to them, clearly willing to get physical if she had to, but Jack grabbed her arm, holding her back.

"Hmm," Chamberlain said. "Discriminating against a paying customer? Maybe the next people I send to prison will be the two of you."

Amanda lunged forward, fuming, and Jack grabbed her again, wrapping both arms around her chest so she couldn't start a fight – the last thing they needed was for her to get charged with assault. "This is a private establishment and we have the right to turn away anyone who might cause a disturbance." He said. "And don't try to pull that discrimination crap on us – straight rich white guys don't get discriminated against." The others stepped forward at this point, Nolan beside Jack and Amanda and Spencer and Drew both protectively in front of Hailey, while Charlotte and Louise were both giving Chamberlain death glares from the back of the pack.

Then, Chamberlain's wife did something unexpected – she laughed. "Oh please." Sonya said. "Do you really think we're afraid of you?" She looked at them with a wicked smile. "My husband and I are a lot of things, but we're not stupid. We've been onto all of you since day one." She glanced at Louise. "I mean, did you think my husband really wanted to _sleep_ with you?"

Louise's face fell. "You knew? The whole time?"

"Why do you think he approached you in the first place?" Sonya replied. "The weakest link is always the easiest to break. Too bad you got a little too nosy and had to be…done away with. You could've made a really good double agent. I had higher hopes for you."

"Both of you get out of here right now," Nolan ordered vehemently. "Before we make you get out."

"Oooh, I'm terrified." Chamberlain said sarcastically. He grabbed his wife's arm. "Come on," They turned to go when suddenly Chamberlain's phone began to buzz in his pocket. He pulled it out and glanced at the screen, a smile appearing on his face. "That was McKenzie," He announced. "The jury's back."

* * *

"So they've been conspiring against us this whole time?"

Nolan nodded, while by his side Olivia continued to stare at the Chamberlains, who were sitting smugly in their usual spot in the courtroom. They were waiting for the jury to reconvene so they could hear the verdict. "I mean we figured he'd been planning to frame you," Nolan explained. "But I always thought this was revenge for you breaking up with him – apparently that was the plan since before you two even became involved."

Olivia shook her head. "And to think I actually felt bad for Sonya – being married to that man." She said. "Turns out she's just as twisted as he is."

"They really are a match made in Hell," Nolan agreed.

"But why me?" Olivia asked, turning to look at him. "Out of everyone they could've framed, why did they pick me?"

Nolan shook his head. "I'd like an answer to that myself."

The rest of the group rejoined them then, Stevie with them too. Hailey hugged her mother tightly, not letting go for a very long time. "We fought hard," Stevie told them all. "And we'll keep fighting – no matter what happens today."

Everyone's attention was diverted as Judge Norwood entered the room, sitting down at her bench. She gestured for everyone to go to their seats, placed her glasses on her nose. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, have you reached a verdict?"

The foreman of the jury stood up – a short, balding Latino man. Nolan could see he was visibly shaking. "We have, Your Honor."

"On the charge of money laundering, how do you find?"

In that moment, the seconds seemed to tick by so slowly. Nolan reached for the nearest hand – in this case Amanda's. She squeezed his comfortingly. Olivia grabbed the edge of the table in front of her, expecting the worst.

The foreman gulped. "We find the defendant…guilty."

Involuntarily, Olivia elicited a cry. Hailey's hand flew over her mouth and Spencer grabbed her, pulling her into his side as she began to blubber into him. "OhmyGodohmyGodohmyGod." Nolan closed his eyes and shook his head, feeling like he might start to cry. Amanda squeezed his hand tighter. Jack ran a hand down his face. Louise whispered a little prayer. Without thinking, Charlotte buried her face into Drew's shoulder. Stevie looked down in defeat.

"On the charge of terrorism, how do you find?"

"Guilty."

"And on the charge of treason, how do you find?"

The foreman looked over to Olivia. She looked up, met his eyes, tears spilling down her cheeks. The foreman turned away as he gave their verdict, as if in shame. "Guilty."

* * *

Jack shut the trunk of the taxi after he placed inside the last suitcase inside. "You're all set." He told his mother.

Stevie touched his shoulder. "Don't beat yourselves up, okay? We tried, and we'll try again. It's not over yet."

"I know," Jack said. "But I just can't help but feel bad for Nolan."

Stevie smiled tentatively. "He loves her, doesn't he?"

Jack looked up in surprise at her words. "How'd you know that?"

"Because he looks at that woman the way you used to look at Amanda." She explained. "And I think she looks at him the same way too."

Jack smiled slightly at her statement and opened the door for her, and Stevie slid into the backseat. "Call me when you land, okay?"

She nodded. "And tell Nolan to call me as soon as he's ready for the appeal." She said. "I'll be on the first plane." The two of them said goodbye and Jack closed the door, tapping on the roof so that the driver would know it was safe to pull away.

He walked back to the beach club, flipping the 'open' sign in the window over to 'closed'. Inside, you could hear a pin drop. Amanda was drying glasses, while Nolan sat at one of the stools with his head in his hands. Louise had gone back to Nolan's place, to lay down for a while. Charlotte and the boys had snuck off with a bottle of Glennfiddich and some glasses, surely to drown their sorrows. And Hailey had stormed off as soon as they'd arrived back at the beach club, saying she needed some time to herself.

Jack walked back over to the bar and slung an arm around his wife's shoulder, pulling her into him. Amanda buried her face into the side of his neck and he kissed her on the temple. "I feel horrible." She mumbled. Jack knew she was probably thinking about how she'd felt when her own father was convicted and didn't press the issue.

"I just feel so bad for Hailey," Nolan said, looking up. "Olivia doesn't deserve any of this, she's a good person…"

"You love her, don't you?" Jack blurted out and Nolan and Amanda both looked at him, surprised by this question.

Nolan laughed nervously. "I don't know what you're talking about…"

"Don't try to lie to us." Amanda said. "If anyone knows anything about longing from afar, it's the two of us. We did it for four years."

Nolan opened his mouth to object, but then closed it. "I should've told her how I felt before." He confessed. "Hell, I never should've let her leave in the first place…"

"It's not too late." Jack insisted. "We'll make an appeal, and we'll get her out, and the two of you can make up for lost time. You deserve that, Nolan. You've spent so long trying to help everyone else find their happiness, you should finally fight for your own."

"You need to tell her how you feel." Amanda added. "If you really love her, she should know. Don't waste time like we did."

Nolan was silent for a long moment, seemingly deep in thought. Finally, he stood up. "I have to go." He said, turning on his heel and walking out with determination.

The married couple watched him go for a second, and Amanda wrapped her arms around Jack. "Do you think it'll work out for him this time?"

"I don't know," Jack said honestly. "But I hope so."

* * *

The prison seemed so much worse now – if that was even possible. It had been terrible before, but it seemed darker, dirtier, dimmer now that she knew she was going to be stuck here forever. Olivia laid back on her dingy bed, counting the cracks in the ceiling. Every time she lost count, she started over – it wasn't like she was in a rush. She had the rest of her life to spend in here, after all.

"Anderson," A guard barked, causing Olivia to sit up. "You have a visitor, come on."

She was escorted to another room in shackles and other prisoners leered at her as she walked past. One woman spit on her and Olivia flinched - she couldn't even wipe it off her own face.

When they reached the room she saw him – Nolan was sitting at the same little metal table where they'd met too many times recently. He smiled when he saw her but it was obviously completely forced.

She sat down, while the guard stepped back into the corner to watch them. Nolan reached out, sliding his fingers through hers even though he knew she couldn't reciprocate the attempt at hand holding. "I want to talk to you."

"Is Hailey with you?" Olivia asked. She wanted to see her daughter too – her poor daughter, who she hadn't even been given the chance to hold before the guards had dragged her back off to her cell. The daughter who she would probably never hold ever again.

"No – no I came alone this time. She needed some time by herself. And I kind of want to have a private conversation anyway…" He trailed off and it was clear to Olivia something was bothering him – something other than the obvious anyway.

"What is it?" She said. She squeezed his hand the best she could while being handcuffed.

Nolan looked up, so many indescribable emotions in his eyes. "I'm in love with you." He confessed breathily. "I never stopped loving you. I just…I couldn't stand the thought of you not knowing how much you mean to me. You're...you're everything to me, Olivia."

Olivia only stared at him, not sure what to say. She had so many conflicting emotions. Her first thought was the obvious: _I love you too! I've always loved you!_ Because that was the truth – she knew for certain that she was forever, irrevocably in love with Nolan Ross, and nothing would ever change that.

But there was another part of her brain that was telling her the opposite. She had already caused him so much pain when she left the first time – her stupid, in-over-her-head self selfishly breaking his heart into a million pieces. He deserved better than her. He didn't deserve to spend the rest of his life obsessing over a girl with a life sentence. He deserved a normal life, a family of his own, true happiness. And she couldn't give him that. Not anymore.

The first tear fell down her cheek as she gave him her answer. She knew this was what she had to do. "I…I don't love you."

* * *

The bottle of Glennfiddich was half-empty by this point as Drew poured himself another glass. He downed it all in one big gulp, then filled it again. Across the table Spencer was swirling the scotch in his glass, while next to Drew Charlotte was staring dejectedly at the tabletop. He poured himself a little more – it was just depressing all around.

Spencer lifted his glass halfway to his mouth, but then put it back down. "I should probably go look for Hailey, right?" He said. "I'm worried about her."

"Do you even know where she went?" Drew asked, downing his drink.

Spencer shrugged, rising from the table. "I don't know, but I'm going to find her. I'll talk to you guys later?" Drew nodded and they said goodbye, then Spencer left.

"Well, I guess it's just you and me." Drew said to Charlotte teasingly, but she didn't even look up. "Hey, you okay?" He asked concernedly. Charlotte lifted her head and he saw that her eyes had welled up with tears. "Hey, hey, hey." Drew said, reaching over to wipe her eyes. "It's okay – we'll get them next time."

"It's not that, not really." She confessed. "I've just been such an idiot…"

"Are you drunk?"

"No! I don't even like scotch." She said, shoving the glass away from her. "I'm an idiot because…because I can't do this anymore! Sneaking around in bathroom stalls and not meeting each other's eyes and keeping everything all bottled up inside...I _like_ you Drew, and honestly who knows what's going to happen to us? We...we could die tomorrow, or...or go to prison! We should be living!" She turned to Drew, only to see him smiling. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Because I like you too," He said. "And the last thing you are to me is a dirty little secret. In fact...I think you should be my girlfriend."

She smiled half-heartedly. "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah," Drew said. "Because if I can do that to you in a bathroom stall, imagine what I can do in an actual bed."

Charlotte laughed. "You're a jerk."

"Yeah, but I'm _your_ jerk."

"That you are."

He ducked his head and cupped her cheek. She stared into his dark eyes for a moment before he pulled her lips to his, kissing her on the mouth. For the first time all day, Charlotte felt like it was going to be okay.

* * *

He looked everywhere he could think of – after he left the beach club he went back to the courthouse, stopped by Nolan's, checked to see if she was visiting the prison. Hailey was nowhere to be found. Spencer sighed as he pulled his Jeep into his driveway, the sun beginning to set between the trees. He pressed his forehead against the steering wheel, taking a moment to catch his breath as he comprehended the events of the day. When he looked up again, he was caught off guard by what he saw.

Spencer got out of his car and started to walk up the pathway towards his condo. Hailey was sitting on the steps, legs crossed, the little book he'd seen her reading earlier still in her hands. The wind was blowing lightly, her blonde hair fluttering around her face. "I'm sorry if I startled you," She said, not looking up from whatever it was that she was reading. "I figured you'd be here, but when I got here no one was home."

"It's okay," Spencer said, sitting down next to her on the steps. Their knees brushed. "How are you holding up?"

Hailey still didn't look at him, her eyes observing the words on the page in front of her. "I know that I have you guys," She said. "You, Nolan, Charlotte, Amanda, Jack, Louise, Drew. And I know that we're going to fight the conviction…but I still feel alone. My mom is gone, and I don't know if anything is ever going to be the same again…"

A beat passed. "My parents are dead," Spencer found himself saying. When he turned his head Hailey was staring at him, eyes wide at this unexpected confession. "They died when I was ten. Nobody here knows. Not Drew, not Nolan…not anyone. So I know exactly how you're feeling, and I know it sucks. But I promise I'll be here for you."

It was silent for a long moment. Finally Hailey extended the book towards him. "This is what I've been reading."

Spencer took it from her, scanning the page. "I've been thinking about MH a lot," He read aloud. "About all the pain we've caused each other, about all he's put me through – and yet despite all of that, I still can't help but hope that things will get better. For Hailey." He looked up at Hailey now, visibly confused. "Hailey, who is MH?"

Hailey stared at the ground, and for a moment she didn't speak. "Spencer, MH is my father. And I want to find him."

* * *

 _…Ninety-nine. One hundred. One hundred and one. One hundred and two. One hundred and three. One hundred and –_

"Anderson!"

The prison guard's sharp voice brought Olivia back to reality again. She sat up, ceiling tiles forgotten, and wiped the tears from her eyes so he wouldn't get the satisfaction of seeing her cry. The guard gestured for her to come with him. "Another visitor. You're a popular girl, Anderson."

This time as she was escorted towards the visitor's room, the other inmates tried to harass her but the guard yelled at them before they could. Her eyes caught the woman who had spit on her before – now she only smiled twistedly.

The guard led her into the room, and for a moment Olivia expected it to be Nolan, back to plead with her again. But it wasn't. Hailey looked up, her expression stoic, and a smile broke out on Olivia's face for the first time all day.

"Hi, Hailes." She said, sitting down across from her only child, the center of her universe. She reached out her bound hands, wanting some kind of contact, but Hailey slid her own hands under the table.

"We need to talk."

"Okay…" Olivia agreed. "How are you hanging in there, honey?"

Hailey didn't respond, instead digging into her bag. She placed the book on the table, opened it to a dog-eared page. "MH is one half of her," She read out loud. "MH is one half of her, and I am too. No matter what happens between us now, nothing will ever change that."

Olivia's face fell. "Hailey, how did you get that…?"

"My father," Hailey said, not answering her. "MH. Mike – that was his name, wasn't it? Did his last name start with H, too?"

"Hailey," Olivia said firmly. "Honey, let's talk about this…"

"I want a chance to know him. I know he left but…like you said, he's still one half of me. That will never go away. And with you stuck in here…I need to see him, Mom. I have to. I need to face him now more than ever."

Olivia shook her head. "Hailey, you have no idea –"

"He's my father!" Hailey insisted forcefully. "God, he's my _dad_ , all I have left, and I don't have a single memory of him! Can't you just help me?"

Olivia stared down at the tabletop. "I gave your father a chance to get to know you a long time ago, and we all know how that turned out. Now we all just have to live with it. No matters how much it hurts."

Hailey stood, picking the journal back up. "I don't care," She said, turning to go. "I'll find him myself."

"Hailey!" Olivia called after her, but the guard grabbed her by the arm, to drag her back to her cell. "I know you have this idea in your head about what he's like, but you're going to be disappointed by what you find! Hailey, come back here! _Hailey!_ "

* * *

They sat on the floor of Nolan's living room, crumpled up pieces of notebook paper scattered around, some untouched glasses of wine on the coffee table. Jack came down the stairs, rejoining Amanda and Louise in the living room. "I put Carl down in the guest room for now," He said, sitting back down on the floor. "He was out like a light."

"That's good," Amanda said. "But we still haven't figured anything out."

Louise pulled the pen cap she'd been chewing on absentmindedly out of her mouth. "So we're pretty sure Chamberlain knew Olivia was going to be the fall guy when he started a relationship with her. And Sonya probably knew too, right?"

"Probably," Jack agreed. "And Chamberlain knew who you were when he approached you after the bombing."

"I still can't believe you two…" Amanda said, trailing off. "You know."

"Hey!" Louise snapped. "I thought you said no judgment?"

"No judgment here – I just can't believe none of us knew about it. Or that you of all people would concoct a plan like that. It was devious."

Louise smiled. "Well, you aren't the only one here who can make a scheme."

The front door opened and they all looked up, wondering if Nolan had finally returned. Charlotte walked inside instead, smiling at something on her phone.

"Okay," Jack said. "Who's the guy?"

Charlotte looked up. "What's that?" She said, feigning ignorance, but the smile on her lips did not subside.

"We know that face." Amanda explained. "So who's the guy?"

Charlotte helped herself to a Diet Coke from Nolan's fridge, holding her phone behind her back. "I don't know what you're talking about," She said. As she leaned down to put her drink on the coffee table, Amanda reached over and grabbed for her phone. "Hey, give it back!" The two sisters wrestled playfully for it for a moment but Amanda's superior training won out. Charlotte collapsed back onto the couch in defeat while Amanda took her phone in her hands, looking at the text message on her screen.

"Drew?" She said, surprised. "You like Drew?"

Charlotte covered her face with a pillow. "We're seeing each other," She confessed. "It's new but...nice. Really nice."

She lowered the pillow from her face to see that Amanda was smiling at her. She handed her her phone back. "Charlotte, if you're happy, I'm happy."

"And Drew's a real cutie." Louise added emphatically. "If I were you, I'd jump his bones too."

Charlotte laughed and rolled her eyes. "So anyway, what are you guys working on?" She picked up a notepad, scanning over their notes about the Chamberlains. "Ugh," She said. "Who would've thought that little bitch was in on it with them?"

"I don't understand any of this," Jack said with exasperation. "So both of the Chamberlains are terrorists – but the Liberators didn't need a fall guy, and even if they did they could've picked anyone at Chamberlain's company they wanted. Yet they picked Olivia – a secretary who doesn't look like she could hurt a fly. Why?"

"My father." Amanda blurted out, and the other three all looked at her in surprise. "Olivia went with Nolan to visit my father so many times – she wrote about it in her diaries, and the prison would've documented it. Back then, everyone thought he was guilty. She could have easily been painted as a terrorist sympathizer."

Charlotte nodded. "McKenzie mentioned the visits on the stand." She confirmed. "I asked Nolan how she knew our father but he never told me."

"Because if he did he'd have to tell you how in love with her he was," Louise singsonged, and Charlotte's eyes widened in surprise.

"My dad and Olivia?"

Louise waved her off. "God, no! Nolan and O-"

The door opened again, effectively cutting her off, and this time it was Nolan who walked inside. "Hey," Jack said to him. "How did it go?"

Nolan dropped his briefcase and shrugged off his jacket. "I don't want to talk about it."

"What did she say?" Amanda pressed.

"I said," Nolan repeated sternly. "I don't want to talk about it." Everyone realized immediately just how serious he was – Nolan wasn't one to use that tone with them, he was usually very agreeable. He sighed. "I need some air…" Before anyone could say anything else, he walked out again and slammed the door.

Louise rubbed her temples. "This is all enough to make my head spin."

"One's thing for sure," Charlotte agreed. "All of this is a million times more complicated than we thought."

* * *

 _Some say that a day of judgment will come._

He stood along the shoreline, watching the sun set on the horizon. The waves rolled in, soaking the bottoms of his pant legs, but he couldn't even fathom moving in that moment. It was like he was frozen. The events of the day were on repeat in his mind, like a twisted greatest hits.

 _We've been onto all of you since day one._

 _Guilty._

 _Guilty._

 _Guilty._

 _I don't love you._

 _The heavens will open up, the earth will quake, and all our destinies shall be sealed._

"Hey,"

Nolan turned at the sound of the familiar voice. Hailey was walking down the beach towards him, the wind whipping her hair, her shoes in her hands.

"Hailey," He said as she joined his side. "I'm so sorry…"

"Please don't apologize," She said. "It's not your fault. You did everything you could."

 _On this day, we will face our last judgment – our past actions, sins, and mistakes shall determine our fortune. The ultimate choice will be made for us – Heaven or Hell, joy or sorrow, forgiveness or damnation._

The two watched the sun for a long moment as it made its slow descent across the sky. The wind was picking up, raising goosebumps across all of Nolan's exposed skin.

"I wanted to talk to you about something." Hailey said finally.

"Your mother's appeal?" Nolan guessed. "They're working on it back at the house right now –"

"That's not it," Hailey said, and Nolan looked at her with confusion. She dug into her bag and pulled out a little book, handing it to him.

Nolan opened it up to the bookmarked page. He looked up, more perplexed than ever. "Hailey, what is this?"

"It's my mother's journal." She explained. "From around the time I was a baby. The MH she refers to…is my father."

 _But I don't agree with that. I think..._

"Okay…" Nolan began hesitantly. "What does that have to do with me?"

Hailey turned to him, fierce determination in her eyes. "I want you to help me find him. I want you to help me find my father."

 _...we should determine our own destinies._

* * *

 **A/N (again)** : Welp, that's it folks! But don't despair, here are some of the promised teasers to keep you on the edge of your seat until the sequel. Are you ready?

* Nolan will find out something about Olivia that she's never told anyone

* Hailey will get herself - and Charlotte - into a sticky situation that'll have long term repercussions

* Louise's past comes back to haunt her

* Amanda and Jack will be put in a compromising position that forces them to make a tough choice

* The possible romantic feelings between Spencer and Hailey will be addressed, and it will have an impact on their friendship

* I just finished Chapter 5 and it is by far the longest chapter I've ever written for this story. It will include an old-fashioned takedown with three characters teaming up after someone they all love is hurt, and a return from a fan favorite character to stir up trouble (well, at least they are a personal favorite of mine - feel free to make some guesses)

* Hailey's search for her father will be full of twist and turns, and result in an ending that she did not see coming

Please review to tell me what you think of this chapter, what you're looking forward to or wanting in the sequel, maybe even to offer some predictions of what you think is to come. Thank you all for being amazing readers - I loved writing this story, and I hope you loved reading it!


	11. The Revengers: Fire With Fire Sneak Peek

**A/N** : Hi everyone! I know you probably weren't expecting this, but since the first chapter of _The Revengers: Fire With Fire_ is just a little over a week away, I thought I would give you all a sneak peek. This includes the first scene from chapter one, which is entitled "Deep Secrets" - each chapter will start and end with a flash forward, just like it was in this story. I also included my version of a promo of sorts - it's just a few random snippets and quotes to give you a hint of what's to come. I'd really appreciate it if you guys could review, even if it's just one word, because I want to make sure that you're all still with me. Like I said before, no one wants to write a story if they think no one is interested, you know? With that being said, enjoy and hopefully I'll see you soon!

* * *

 _ **The Revengers: Fire With Fire**_

 **Chapter One: Deep Secrets**

 **Sneak Peek**

 _Everyone has secrets._

The party was in full swing around him – dancing, drinking, talking, and laughing. The foyer to Ellis Manor had been adorned with seasonal decorations – strings of heart shaped lights, bouquets of red roses, even pink champagne and rosé to drink. But instead of joining in on the festivities Nolan Ross simply stood by himself, leaning up against the wall, staring dejectedly into his champagne flute. He watched as a random couple smiled at each other, dancing to a Frank Sinatra song, and took another swig of his drink.

 _Things which they keep locked up inside._

Across the room, Amanda Porter (née Clarke) glanced at him over her shoulder. "We can't tell him," She said, turning back to her husband Jack. "He'll freak."

"Are you sure?" Jack said. "I mean, this concerns him too –"

"I'm sure," Amanda insisted. "This has to stay between us, alright?"

Jack nodded in agreement. "Don't worry – we'll take care of this. I know you – you always have a plan."

Reluctantly, Amanda smiled slightly. "Okay, so I might be coming up with a few possibilities in my head…"

He beamed with pride and took a drink of his champagne. "That's my girl."

She looked over again, her smile fading as she watched Nolan, standing by himself drinking across the room. "He doesn't deserve any of this." She said. "After everything he's been through, he deserves happiness. And I don't want to take that from him…"

"You won't." Jack promised. "He's our best friend - we're not going to let anything happen to him."

When she turned back around, Amanda had a mischievous glint in her eye. "I have a plan."

"Okay, what are we –" He was caught off guard when she kissed him firmly on the mouth. "What was that for?"

"Because I love you." She explained. "And I need to get my mind off this. It is Valentine's Day, after all."

Jack gave her a look. "You hate Valentine's Day. You called it an excuse to sell Hallmark cards."

Amanda shrugged. "It is – but you said you wanted to make me like it." She smirked. "But you know, if you're not confident in your ability to succeed…"

He chuckled at the nature of her challenge and placed his glass down on the nearest table, then took her hand in his. "Fine, you're on."

 _Threatening to boil over at any moment._

While the couple snuck off like the two crazy high school kids they never got to be together, Nolan's attention was diverted when he caught sight of the woman descending the stairs. Her hair was cascading in loose waves past her shoulders and she wore a body-hugging silver dress, but her appearance did not faze him tonight. She smiled as she approached him. "Hi," She said. "Can I steal you for a dance?" She reached to grab his arm but he yanked it away. He could see the look of confusion cross her face. "What's wrong?"

Nolan shook his head at her, his jaw clenched. "Olivia…" He began, his voice stern. "I know."

This only perplexed her more. "You know what?"

 _Everyone has secrets, whether they be little white lies they once told, or skeletons in their closets which could possibly ruin lives._

The doorbell rang, effectively distracting them mid-conversation. Louise went to get it, teetering-tottering in her sky-high heels, a drink still in her hand. "Come on in y'all, party's just getting star–" She froze when she saw the people standing outside her front door – definitely not more guests. In a matter of seconds the entire party was suddenly silenced, all gawking at their unexpected visitors.

The two cops took a step forward. "Sorry to bother you ma'am," One said. "But are you Louise Ellis?"

Louise nodded slowly. "Yes…can I help you officers with something?"

"We're sorry to break up your party," The second cop said. "But we have some questions for you – about a murder."

 _And it's only a matter of time until they get out._

* * *

 _ **The Revengers: Fire With Fire**_ **Promo**

 **Olivia** : "What are you doing here?"

/

 **Nolan** : "You lied to me."

/

 **Hailey** : "My name is Hailey Anderson. Olivia Anderson is my mother. And I think you might be my father."

/

 **Drew** : "I swear to God I _will_ kill you!"

/

 **Spencer** : "What is the matter with you?"

/

 **Amanda** : "We all know...what happened to him. _Who_ happened to him."

/

 **Jack** : "They should've known better than to mess with someone we love."

/

 **Louise** : "How do you live with yourself...with all these lives you've ruined?"

/

 **Charlotte** : "Please, _please_ don't let them get away with this!"

/

 **Amanda** : "Jack, I need to tell you something..."

/

 **Olivia** : "Are you honestly telling me that you would've still supported me had you known? If you'd known what a horrible thing I'd done?"

/

 **Hailey** : "Oh my God! Oh my God, _no_!"

 ** _THE REVENGERS: FIRE WITH FIRE_ IS OUT AUGUST 8TH!**


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